A Little Ice to Ease the Pain
by naleyscottaaf
Summary: Haley agrees to help Brooke out for a night and take her shift in the Athletic Trainer's office. Little does she know a favor to her best friend introduces her to Nathan Scott, just the guy to reignite her injured heart. A/U. Mainly NH, some Baley/Brucas
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey All! After writing my first FF, I have been thinking about a good plot for my second. I hadn't planned on writing anything A/U, but I started thinking about this idea the other day, and I wanted to see where it goes.

Summary: Haley agrees to help Brooke out for a night and take her shift in the Athletic Trainer's office. Little does she know a favor to her best friend introduces her to Nathan Scott, just the guy to reignite her injured heart. A/U. Mainly NH, some Baley/Brucas.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill

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"Haaaaley! C'mon, puhleeeeze!" Brooke whined as she flung herself down on to Haley's bed. Haley rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. She loved her roommate and best friend from high school, but she was so dramatic. She glanced over at Brooke, who was still wriggling around, messing up the neatly made twin bed, and stifled a giggle. Brooke, her best friend since they were 6, could really throw a temper tantrum, and Haley knew she had a small window of time before Brooke would morph into a full on terrible two's style fit.

"Brooke, it's your job. I have a job. I go to the Tutoring Center. I work in the library. And I even worked for six hellish weeks in the cafeteria before the tutor position opened. I am not filling in for you tonight, and frankly, I don't even understand why you have this job…." she trailed off, as she clicked around on her laptop. "Haley, I know you are Tutor girl. I know that you work in the library, doing God knows what. And you know that I work in the athletic trainer's office so that I can scope out all the hot guys and soothe their aching muscles, she said, wiggling her eyebrows seductively.

"Brooke, first, I shelve books in the library. Second, ew," Haley replied. She knew that she would cave and fill in for Brooke in the Athletic Trainer's office, but she enjoyed making her beg. Knowing Brooke the job couldn't be too tough, and she could probably do some studying. Frankly, she was surprised that Brooke never asked her to fill in before, but this was the first Friday night she was scheduled to work.

"Haley, okay listen. If I didn't have this job, I wouldn't have met Lucas, who I really think might be _the one_. So for good relationship karma you have to help me out." Brooke said sweetly, batting her eyes at Haley. "Wait," Haley said incredulously, "_The one_? Brooke Davis might stop serial dating and settle down?! I need to alert the Associated Press."

"Ha Ha," Brooke muttered, standing up to go through her bursting closet. "I just really like him, Hales. And he asked me out to dinner, and I really want to go. Please help me out." Haley sighed again. "Sure, what else do I have to do tonight?" she murmured. "Awww! Hales! You are the best roommate, best friend I could ask for! Thank you Thank you Thank you!" Brooke yelled, as she drug Haley into a bear hug. Haley smiled; at least one of them was enjoying the college life.

A few hours later, Haley was walking across campus towards the Athletic Buildings. She had been over here a couple times to watch basketball games with Brooke or to visit Brooke at work. The campus was crawling with people in couples or small groups. Haley entered the building and walked to the office. Using Brooke's key she let herself in to the room, and turned on the lights. The larger room was divided into different sections. The first part had some exam tables and a small desk for the student worker. Haley dropped her school bag on the desk, and walked back further into the room. There was a small room to her left that had the hot tub and cold pool for the athletes to soak in depending on their muscle issues, as well as, a huge ice machine. Further back was a wide-open room with a variety of closets and tables and the Athletic Trainer's office.

She wandered back up front and thought about Brooke's instructions. All she had to do was sit here, and wait for an athlete to come in. She looked at the practice schedule for the teams on the wall next to the small desk. The basketball team was the only one scheduled for practice tonight, and they were in the weight room. She rolled her eyes. Great, she thought to herself, I am here for 3 hours, while Brooke is flitting around our room beautifying herself and there is only one team practicing. No one is even going to come in here!

She dug through her schoolbag and pulled out the novel she was reading for her literature class. Might as well do some studying, she thought, trying to get comfortable in the small desk. She glanced up at the row of exam tables that were connected to each other along the wall. She got up and hopped onto the table, stretching out comfortably. Maybe this job isn't so bad after all, she thought.

Nathan Scott walked slowly towards the trainer's office. The rest of the team was heading off quickly to their rooms to get ready to hit up the parties. He was beat and all he wanted was to soak in the hot tub in the office, grab a couple bags of ice, and then crawl into bed and watch Sports Center until he drifted off to sleep. The first semester of college, he partied hard, but then when his grades were lower than he would have liked, he straightened up a bit to make sure that he would remain eligible to play. His new routine was to stay in on Fridays so he could be up early on Saturdays, study, and then party on Saturday nights. But the past couple weeks he couldn't even bring himself to go out on Saturdays. It was getting old. The parties, the girls, the booze. He had done that in high school. He wanted something different.

He turned the handle to the office and walked in. Stretched out on the exam tables was a girl with long brown hair and the most perfect ass he had ever seen. And my night just got more interesting, he thought to himself. "Ahem," he cleared his throat.

Haley shot straight up in the air and flipped around. She was so engrossed in the book that she didn't even hear the door open. "Oh shit, I mean, hi, I mean, can I help you?" she rambled. She looked at his face and he smirked, "Yeah, I am just going to go in and soak for a bit. Sorry that I disturbed you from your reading," he muttered as he limped into the room with the tubs. Haley felt flushed. She had noticed Nathan Scott on campus before. You would have to blind not to see him. But she hadn't been this close to him before. He had gorgeous eyes, and she couldn't help herself from checking out his ass as he walked into the other room. She also noticed the limp.

Haley slid off the tables and walked into the room behind, taking in how his back muscles flexed as he leaned down to drop his bag. He paused to rub his shoulder, and then bent with a slight groan to untie his shoes and kick them off. "Umm," she whispered. He jerked slightly at her voice. He hadn't really expected her to follow him into the room. He turned to face her. "Do you need me to do anything?" she asked, "I mean, my friend, Brooke, is the one that works here, so she knows what to do, and I don't really know, but I can do whatever it is you need," she blurted out. "Whatever it is I need, huh? Well it certainly is my lucky day," he replied, his face breaking into the famous Nathan Scott smirk.

Haley felt the blush start across her cheeks and spread down her neck to her chest. "I mean, I didn't, you know what I meant," she stuttered, "right?" He grinned again, "Yeah, I am just playing." And then he dropped his pants. Haley didn't know where to look. Her eyes were darting around, as she chanted quietly to herself, don't look, don't look, don't look. Finally, she looked back at his face and noticed he was trying not to laugh. "What!?" she squeaked. He chuckled softly, and said, "I have shorts on, relax." She looked down and exhaled heavily, he was still wearing his warm up shorts. "I knew that," she retorted. He turned, grabbed the hem of his shirt, and pulled it off, revealing his sculpted back to her. She felt her mouth go dry. He was physically perfect. A little cocky, but his body was so perfect that she almost understood the cockiness and why half the girls on campus were throwing themselves at him.

He climbed into the pool and eased himself into the bubbling tub. After a long workout, nothing felt better than the surging bubbles and heat of the tub. He jerked suddenly, as he felt something cold touch his exposed shoulder. He glanced up, and saw the girl was resting a bag of ice on his shoulder. Once he relaxed again, it felt so good. He had strained his shoulder, stupidly, showing off with Lucas in the weight room, and the ice was perfect. He smiled, "How did you know?" She grinned, "I saw you rubbing it when you came in here." "Ahh, very observant," he replied, "So, what's your name?"

"Haley James," she said, adjusting the ice, so that the bag covered as much of his shoulder as possible. "Are you Haley James that lives with Brooke Davis?" he asked leaning into her hand that was holding the ice on his shoulder. "Yep, that's me. How do you know Brooke?" she said warily. Brooke was a little….friendly during the first semester. She had been flitting around from boy to boy, proclaiming herself the Make-out Queen. She felt a twinge of jealously that Brooke might have kissed his lips or run her fingers through his hair, like her fingers were itching to do. "She is dating my brother, Lucas," he mumbled, stretching his long legs under the water. "Right, Lucas Scott, Nathan Scott, brothers," she said back to him. He grinned, "Exactly."

They sat quietly for a minute. Haley shifted. Her position was a little precarious, perched on the edge of the hot tub, pressing her hand against the bag of ice. Her legs were cramping; her fingers were numb, but she didn't want to move away from him. She looked down at him, taking in his defined chest and taught abs. His long legs were muscular and floating in the water. He looked so peaceful. Finally, the cramping in her legs was unbearable, so she moved to get up. "Wait," he said, "don't go. I like being here with you. I feel…." he trailed off. "What?" she murmured. "Peaceful," he breathed.

He looked up at her and took in her face. She was beautiful. Her lips were full and pink and he wondered what they tasted like. He looked up at her eyes, beautiful, brown, and full of emotions. Nervousness, curiosity, and even lust. He moved his hand over the hand on his shoulder, and gave her hand a squeeze. He felt how cold her fingers were. "Jeez, Haley, your hand is freezing," he muttered. He began rubbing her tiny cold fingers in his warm wet hand. "Here, put your hand in the water," he instructed, "Why didn't you move your hand when it got so cold?" he asked curiously. "I didn't want to move," she breathed out. He looked up at her again. Yep, definitely some lust in her eyes. He could feel his heart start to pound. He didn't usually feel like this with girls. He could pretty much get any girl he wanted simply by showing up at a party. But with Haley, he felt different. He didn't just want to bed her and leave her. He wanted more.

He grinned, "I didn't want you to move either." He kept rubbing her fingers gently, his thick calloused fingers tracing little circles on her palm, and brushing over her knuckles. She shivered at the sensations. He noticed, and asked, "Still cold?" She felt the blush spreading over her cheeks and down her neck. "No, not cold," she whispered. She couldn't believe this. She was Haley James. She didn't get all swoony and mushy over guys. After her terrible high school boyfriend treated her badly and cheated on her, she swore guys off, focusing only on school and work. But feel Nathan's hand wrapped around hers, she suddenly forgot all the good reasons she had for ignoring the opposite sex.

_**Please read and review!**_


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hey all! Here's installment two. Thank you for the reviews and for adding me to your favorites and alerts. It really does encourage writing to know that people out there want to read it. I know that I am not always the best about reviewing when I read others work, but it at least helps to see that you want to be kept up to date, but please if you have the time, shoot me a review and let me know what you think or if you have suggestions, and especially let me know if you are confused by anything!

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Haley was losing herself in the sensations of Nathan's fingers on her palm. She felt her heart begin pounding even harder than it had been when she first saw Nathan enter the office, and she knew she had to stop it. "Well," she stammered, surprised by how shaky her voice sounded, "I am supposed to be making you comfortable; you're the big athlete after all!" She tried to sound lighthearted as she begrudgingly pulled her hand from Nathan's hands. "Can I get you anything else?" she asked, avoiding eye contact.

His mouth was dry and if he weren't underwater, he was sure his palms would be sweaty. Who is this girl? And why does she make me feel like this, he wondered to himself. "Uh, no, but thanks," he mumbled, turning back to face the wall. Haley slowly walked out of the room and over to the desk. She pulled out her phone to check the time. Great, I still have 35 minutes here before I can leave. She sat down at the desk, and tried to read, but she couldn't stop thinking about the boy in the other room. Why did he touch her like that? He must have just been being nice, since she brought him the bag of ice. Or maybe he thought she was coming on to him? Are you supposed to bring the athletes bags of ice in the pool? Or is this self-service? "Damn Brooke and her lousy instructions," she muttered to herself.

She could hear some splashing in the other room, and she tried to block it out. She couldn't help herself from imagining Nathan's perfect body sloshing around in the pool. Beads of water running down his taught chest and tracing the lines of his perfect abs, pooling in his lap where his big---

"Um, Haley?" he called, breaking her daydream. She shook her head, trying to banish all the naughty thoughts, as she walked into the room. He was out of the pool, wearing his pants again. "Yes?" she asked, raising her eyebrow. "Can you please wrap my shoulder?" he asked, holding out a bag of ice, and a roll of what looked like plastic wrap. She furrowed her brow. "Listen, Nathan, I don't want to hurt you. I shouldn't even be here. I don't know how to do this stuff. I haven't been trained," she said, holding her hands up as if she were surrendering. "Hales," he whined, "Don't be silly; you don't have to be trained. I will talk you through it. I would do it myself if it were my leg, but it's my shoulder, and I'd need two hands."

Her heart skipped a beat, as he called her by her nickname. Stop it, she thought to herself. It's a common nickname, like calling Joseph, Joe. He walked over to her and grabbed her hands, thrusting the roll of wrap into them. "Here I will hold the ice, you take the wrap and start on top of the ice and then just keep wrapping it around and around until we can take our hands away and it stays," he instructed. She hesitantly started wrapping the plastic around his shoulder, stifling a giggle as her fingers brushed the hair under his arms, and then later stifling a gasp as the back of her hand brushed against his firm chest.

God, her fingers keep touching me, he thought to himself. Keep it cool, Scott. Don't look at her, just think about other stuff. He couldn't help himself from looking at her. She was so petite; her head only came up to his shoulder. With her arms stretched up and around him, he had an excellent view down her blouse, which was modest yet on her perfect body was very sexy. Be a gentleman, he kept chanting in his head. Wait, _be a gentleman_? When am I ever a gentleman, he wondered to himself. To hell with it, he figured, as his eyes slid down from the top of her head where he had focused, to her long smooth neck and finally to her cleavage. Perfect 10, he decided. A little more than a handful. Stop thinking about her breasts; think about something else. Like her perfect lips, or the way her pink tongue is sticking out, resting on her perfect lips as she concentrates, or how her pink tongue and perfect lips would feel on my….." Ugh," he breathed.

She pulled back, and looked up at him, questioningly, breaking him out of the internal war that he was having with himself over the pros and cons of checking out her fabulous body. "Too tight? I'm sorry," she whispered quickly, as she eased up a bit. "No, tighter, Hales, do it tighter," he said, looking at his shoulder.

Thank God, he isn't looking at me as he tells me tighter, she thought to herself. God Haley Elizabeth James. Get your mind out of the gutter, she chastised herself quietly. Finally, he said, "Okay that feels good and it should keep until I am ready for bed. Thanks a ton." He flashed his million dollar Scott smile at her, turned to grab his bag and headed out. Good job, man, he thought to himself. Just get away from her and her damn lips and tongue and hands, and Jesus, just stop already, he chastised himself.

She stood there for a minute reveling in what had just happened and trying to convince herself that it wasn't anything more than just a student worker helping an athlete. She turned off the tubs and lights in the room, and then went back to the desk, shoving her books into her school bag and digging her keys out. She left the office, locking the door behind her. "So where are you headed?" a voice rang out. She jumped, clutching at her heart and turning to face the person who had just come up behind her. It was Nathan. "I thought you left," she murmured. "I was going to, but then I thought, it's dark, and we're both headed over towards the dorms, might as well wait. You are headed to the dorm, right?" he grinned. "Yeah, to my dorm, great," she said, plastering a smile on her face, "We can walk back together; I appreciate it." Okay, Haley, keep cool, she thought to herself, this isn't a big deal, just a devastatingly attractive guy who touched you and then waited for you and is now walking beside you to your room; keep it in your pants. She giggled quietly to herself. "What's so funny?" he asked, as he held the door to the building open for her. "Nothing, nothing," she stammered, "I laugh when I am nervous."

"Oh, so I make you nervous," he smirked at her. Of course, you make her nervous, doofus. You have been staring at her like she is something to eat, and then you touched her. She probably thinks you are going to drag her off somewhere and make a mask out of her skin, he thought to himself, as the cocky smirk fell from his face.

Shit, shit, shit, Haley thought, way to open your mouth and blurt it out. Why don't you just say, Nathan, you are so hot, and all I can think about is stroking your naked chest and stomach. "Uh, well, no, I mean, I have a test on Monday, in English, and I, uh, didn't get much done tonight, and so I am nervous, about the test I have, on, uh, Monday," she stuttered. Great job, James, way to keep it cool, you stuttering fool, she thought.

"Um, Haley, it's Friday night. You have plenty of time. And besides, I have heard you are like one phone call away from Mensa, so you'll be fine," he replied. "Who told you I was smart?" she asked. "Oh well, Brooke talked to Lucas about her brilliant roommate, and he mentioned you to me when he was telling me about his new girlfriend. He is really into her," he said. "Yeah? She really likes him too," Haley replied.

See, she thought to herself, just two people whose friends are in a relationship; you can have a normal conversation with him. Good job, Nathan, just small talk. Talk about Lucas, that's a topic that would never result in any inappropriate thoughts, Nathan told himself.

They walked for a couple minutes in silence, until they reached Haley's dormitory. "So, listen, Haley, thanks," he said, looking into her eyes, "I mean, with the shoulder and all." "Right," she said carefully, "I was happy to help, I mean, it's my job, well actually it's Brooke's, but she wanted to get ready for the date with your brother, and she needed the time to get ready, so I figured, what else am I doing tonight? I can study anywhere…" she trailed off as she noticed Nathan chuckling under his breath. "What?" she asked haughtily. "You ramble," he replied. "So, yes, I ramble, why is that funny?" she retorted. "Nothing, you're just, uh, cute, when you ramble," he muttered, running his hand through his hair.

Haley could feel the blush spreading again. Thank God, it's dark, she thought to herself. "Oh, thanks, I guess," she replied, looking down at her keys. "So, thanks for walking me back, I guess I'll be seeing you around now that Lucas and Brooke are together," she said.

"Absolutely, I'll be seeing you," Nathan said, grinning. They looked at each other for a second, and then Nathan turned and started walking away. He stopped and called back, "And, Haley, good luck studying for that test. I'll be thinking of you on Monday."

"And I will certainly be thinking of you," she whispered to herself, as she waved goodbye and let herself into the building. Haley climbed the steps to her room, and unlocked the door. She walked over to her computer, and noticed a note taped to the screen.

**Tutor Girl or should I say Athletic Trainer Girl, **

**Thank you again for helping me out. I hope tonight wasn't too too boring for you. I left you a surprise in our freezer!**

**Don't wait up! **

**Brooke **

Haley sighed as she read the note. "Don't wait up…" she muttered. She went over to the small refrigerator and opened the freezer door. Ben and Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch! "I love you, Brooke," she murmured happily, as she ripped off the lid and dug through their utensils for a spoon. She flopped over on her bed and scooped up some ice cream. "Yum!" she said happily. I'll bet Nathan Scott tastes yummy too, she found herself thinking.

As Haley ate the ice cream, she replayed the night's events and tried to remember the swirling butterflies she felt in her stomach as Nathan's fingers touched her hand. She hadn't felt that way in…well, ever. She remembered her ex-boyfriend with a shudder.

"_C'mon, babe," he whined, as he slid his hand further up her shirt, ignoring how she pulled away. "Seriously, Tim, I told you before, not yet," she said. "Well when," Tim retorted, without removing his hand. "When we are in love," she said back, trying to roll away from him. "Oh baby, I am in love right now," he breathed into her neck. She lay still for a second, and then pulled his face up to look at her. "Really, you love me?" she asked surprised. "Of course I do," he said quickly, and tried to go back to kissing her neck. "Oh, Tim, I love you too, I just didn't want to say anything because I didn't think you loved me, but now that you said it, I want you to know, I do, I love you too, and…." Tim cut off her rambles with a rough kiss, pressing his tongue between her lips. "So, Haley, want to show me how much you love me?" he asked between kisses, as he forced his hands up higher to cup her breasts. _

_She sighed and tightened her arms around his neck. She loved him, right? So why not have sex. Sex is good between two people who love each other. And he even said it first. Plus, kissing felt good, so why not? "Umm, okay, but just go slow. You know, it's my first time, and I'm glad I waited for you, because I love you," she said back, pressing a kiss below his ear. Hearing her give in, Tim began tearing her shirt up and off. He quickly moved his hands to her back and unclasped her bra. After pressing a quick kisses on each nipple, he moved his hands to her jeans and undid the button. Standing before her, he pulled her jeans down, and then in a quick motion, yanked her panties off. Before Haley knew what was really happening, she saw his clothes flying, and there he was, lying on top of her naked. _

"_Wow, speedy! Come here," she whispered sexily. She felt his hand rubbing up and down her thigh as he pressed hard kisses into her neck. Finally, his fingers moved over her hip and to her center. "Ummm," she breathed, "That feels nice, go slow." Tim kept touching her, and she started to feel herself loosen up. This is good, she kept telling herself, I love him. It's the right thing. _

_Tim rolled over and grabbed for his jeans. "Wait, sweetie, what are you doing?" she asked, sitting up and running her fingers down his back. "Just grabbing a condom," he said, standing before her. He pumped his hand up and down his length a couple times, ripping the wrapper off the condom. She could see he was hard; had she even touched him? "Babe, come here, let me help," she said, trying to sound sensual. "Nah, I got it. I can do it faster any way," he replied as he rolled the condom on. He laid back down on her, and kissed her lips, pressing his tongue into her mouth. "Ready?" he asked. Ready to give up my virginity? Ready to have sex for the first time? she thought quickly. "Yeah, just go slow please, I love you," she said hopefully. "Say it, Tim, tell me again," she asked surprised at the hint of desperation in her voice. "Love you too, babe," he muttered as he forced himself into her. _

_Haley squeezed her eyes shut. Ow! Not terrible, but not great; sort of like a bad torn muscle, she thought to herself. Tim started thrusting. "Sweetie, slow down a little," she breathed, kissing his neck. "I can't stop, Haley," he mumbled, and kept pushing. She opened her eyes, and looked his face. His eyes were closed, and he was making a silly face. She wanted to laugh but she didn't think he would appreciate it. Suddenly he started moving even more quickly. "Hales, babe, oh God, I'm coming," he blurted. One more thrust and he was done. He rolled over, breathing heavily. _

_Haley laid on her back, stunned. She pulled the sheet up over her breasts and tried to replay what had just happened. She ached a little between her legs, but she hadn't felt any fireworks. No explosions, not even a tingle. And the whole thing lasted about 10 minutes. "Tim," she whispered, "Honey?" "Huh," he grunted, "Um.." she said. "Oh yeah, thanks," he grunted again, as he rolled over and placed a peck on her shoulder. He rolled on his side and began breathing deeply. _

_She sat up and grabbed her clothes from the floor. Hastily dressing herself, she looked back at her sleeping boyfriend. Well the first time is never great right? she told herself. "Tim, I'm going to go," she said, rubbing his back. Tim grunted softly in his sleep. She opened the door, and looked back again, hoping he would roll over and say something, tell her that he loved her, anything. "I love you," she whispered, and walked out. _

_The next few weeks were the same. Wham Bam thank you ma'am sessions. She tried to get him to slow down and extend foreplay a bit. Her one attempt at a blowjob resulted in him laughing at her lack of knowledge, and then getting angry when she was too insulted to want to have sex. Finally, after ten or twelve lousy tries, she explained to him that she needed a little more, if he got her drift. Tim had been so irritated, blaming her for not being satisfied, and telling her that he had never gotten complaints in the past. When she got her period the following week, she was secretly happy that their "lovemaking" would be on hold, and even after her period stopped, she began avoiding sex. Finally, they had a blow out fight when she refused._

"_Haley, seriously, this has been going on forever. I know I am not an expert on menstruation, but you don't get it for like 13 days. That's how long it's been, 13 days," he moaned, trying to undo her bra. "Tim, listen, I think it's going too fast. Let's just take a breather from sex," she said, as she pulled away from him. "A breather?" he gritted. "We have only been having sex for a few weeks, and you already want a break. God, you are frigid," he said sharply. "Frigid?" she whispered. "I am not frigid, in fact," she bit out getting angrier, "maybe if I was getting anything out of it, I might want to continue." "Listen, sweets, it's not my fault you can't come. I mean, maybe there is something wrong down there," he retorted. _

"_Something wrong!? With me? No, there is nothing wrong with me," she yelled, "The only thing wrong with me is that I ever loved you. " Well," he said, pulling his shoes on, "Let me let you in on a little secret—I didn't love you. I just said it. I figured maybe if you could keep me happy in bed, I might learn to love you, but how could anyone love someone as cold and unsexy as you?" he shot out, storming to the door. Haley could feel the tears in her eyes, "Just get out, and don't come back!" she screamed. "No problem. And Haley, just a word of advice, I suggest you get some lessons or something before you ever try anything with another guy again, because I was patient, but I doubt the next guy will be!" he yelled back, and then walked out the door, slamming it behind her. _

_Haley slid down onto her bed crying. Never again, she told herself. She wasn't going to put herself in this place again. As her tears fell, she felt sadder. Sad that she gave up her virginity to a guy who didn't love her, sad that she didn't stand up for herself sooner, sad that maybe Tim was right and there was something wrong with her. She stood and looked in the mirror. "Well, Haley," she said to her reflection, voice shaking, "You don't need a guy. You have school; you have your friends. Forget about sex. It wasn't that great any way."_

Haley felt dripping on her hand. She looked down and realized the ice cream had melted and was pouring out of the container. "Damn," she bit out, grabbing a towel. She couldn't help but wonder, as she cleaned up the melted ice cream, if sex with Nathan would have been as disastrous. Forget Nathan, he is everything you aren't, she told herself, confident, sexy, attractive, and he can get any girl he wants. She put the lid on her ice cream, shoved it back in the freezer, and climbed under the covers. She felt so sorry for herself that she didn't even have the strength to wash her face and brush her teeth. "Damn Tim," she whispered, "Damn Nathan, damn sex." She tried to block out thoughts of all three as she drifted off into a fitful sleep.

A/N: It's a little long, but I wanted to give you Haley's back-story, so you can understand what is going to begin happening between them, as well as her hesitance. Hopefully it will explain why she might seem a little blind to Nathan and how he treats her.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: So wow! When I woke up this morning and saw all the people who added me to their alerts and favorites, I swear, I almost cried! Thank you so much for supporting this story! I write for me, because I had an idea and wanted to see it through, but I love knowing that my creativity and work is valued. Especially since this is my first A/U story!!! Also, thank you to those of you who have written reviews, Mel10, Naleyalwaysand4ever, mcc3654, pointofdeception, and especially to oth23oth23, who reviewed both chapters.

One other note, some people asked if Tim was the same Tim from the show. It always helps me if I can visualize the character, so I selected Tim, since he is a boy on the show that we can all picture, but he isn't the same Tim from the show. He and Nathan aren't friends, and he also isn't the same dumb but lovable guy he was on the show. As you could see in the back-story, I made him meaner. I hope it isn't confusing, but I know that sometimes when I read other stories, it takes a while for me to be able to picture the characters, unless they are OTH characters, if there isn't a lot of description, and I didn't want to spend the time with character description. So, same actor, but different character/personality. Hope that's not confusing!!!

Enjoy!

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Nathan trudged back to his dorm room after watching Haley get into the building. His shoulder still ached a bit, it was feeling a little numb from the ice, and his legs were sore despite having soaked in the tub. He let himself into the building, waved at a couple guys in the lounge playing video games, and walked up to his room. On the white board on his door, Lucas had scrawled a quick note.

**Nate, **

**Out with Brooke. **

**Later, **

**Luke**

Nathan unlocked the door and walked into his room, dropping his bag and toeing off his sneakers. His fingers deftly untied the string at his waist and he shrugged his pants off. He unzipped his sweat jacket and carefully pulled it off the sore shoulder. He went to lie down on his bed, yanking back the messy covers, searching for the remote control. Not there. He looked under his bed, moving the shoes and empty water bottles out of his way. Not there either. He stood and looked at his desk, shuffling some old papers. Finally, he walked to Luke's side of the room. Lucas was far neater, but his side was still a little cluttered. "To hell with this," he grumbled, and began yanking the blankets on Luke's bed. Finally, under his pillow was the remote control. "Dick," he bit out, grabbing it and returning to his side of the room. He lay back on the pillows and started flipping though the channels. After he had flicked through all the channels multiple times, he settled on a basketball game on the ESPN Classics channel. The old games that he had watched on VHS tapes when he was a child were soothing, like old friends. But he couldn't concentrate. He couldn't stop thinking about Haley.

What an interesting girl she was, he thought to himself. She was so pretty, beautiful really, but in an understated way. He had met Brooke, and even though she was, his brother's and off limits, he could see how gorgeous she was, but Haley was different. Her beauty came from inside too. He noticed her great ass and nice breasts, but when she smiled, or blushed, or stammered through a ramble, that's when he saw how beautiful she really was. "Pussy," he murmured, chuckling to himself. If the guys could hear me now, talking about a girl's inner beauty, my Man Card would be revoked, he thought.

Haley was certainly different though, to make him think this way. He heard his cell phone vibrating in his bag. "Fuck it," he muttered. He knew it would be some guys from the team or worse yet, some girl he had met first semester, trying to convince him to come out and get loaded. If it was Luke or his parents and they really needed him they could just call the room. His phone had been vibrating the whole way back from the gym, but he didn't want to distract himself from Haley at all. Even when they were walking in silence, he felt relaxed. Usually when he was with a girl, they talked mindlessly the whole time about something ridiculous, full of stupid sexual innuendos and references to their abilities, but with Haley, they were comfortable in the silence.

A smile crossed his face, as he remembered the couple inadvertent things she had said that could be interpreted in a sexual way, and how the blush crossed her cheeks and spread down her neck to her chest. He found himself wondering how far down the blush went, and then shook his head to stop those kinds of thoughts. "Hell, maybe I should go out and hook up tonight," he said. He needed something to distract him. Spending just little time with her, and only touching her hand for a second, he was a little aroused. God, it used to take so much more, he thought.

"_Umm, Nathan, you feel so good," Theresa moaned, "right there, baby, so nice, keep going, harder, to the left, uh huh, I love your fingers, you are so good, oh baby, oh baby." Why can't she stop talking for a second? he wondered, as he buried his face in her neck, his fingers stroking her center. I mean, I am all for getting her off, and I like the idea that girls are in charge of their own orgasms, blah, blah, but all this oh baby stuff is just fake. After a few more minutes of shrieking and babble, Nathan pressed his lips to hers to silence her for a second. She pulled away quickly, "Babe, fuck me now. Put it in, I need you, I want you," she whined. "Okay," he said. Damn, if she wants to make it that easy for me, I am fine with that, he thought to himself, as he rolled over to grab a condom. _

_While he was a player and had more casual sex than he was proud of, did pride himself in being able to satisfy a woman, which was probably why they were lined up. His bedroom antics, while certainly hyperbolized, had become legends in high school and those stories and the groupies to go along with them, followed him to college. He was always a little hesitant with the girls who didn't appreciate the extra foreplay. If they could get off without it, good for them, but if they were just trying to make him happy he didn't like it. He wasn't looking for a relationship, so the sex should be mutually satisfying. _

_He rolled over and brushed the hair from her face. "Hey," he whispered, and leaned in to kiss her mouth gently, as he slid into her slowly. She broke away, "Faster, faster, harder," she barked. Fine, she wants it hard, I will, he said to himself. He began thrusting, within seconds she was moaning like a porn star. It was almost distracting. Between the fake moans, and the incessant rambling about how she was seeing God, not to mention her long nails scraping chunks of skin from his back, he could almost not concentrate. Finally, he felt the familiar tingle in his balls. He leaned down to kiss her neck gently, trying to get something out of this. He pulled up and looked at her face. She was staring up at the ceiling, mumbling some obscenities, but she looked almost bored. "Hey," he breathed, "I am close, are you almost there?" "Yeah, fuck, oh god," she moaned back, letting her eyes roll dramatically into her head. "Oh God," he muttered, thrusting a couple more times and releasing into her. As he relaxed a bit, she began to scream, "I'm coming, I'm coming" over and over, before grabbing his face and forcing her tongue into his mouth. He rolled over and reached for her, to pull her over for a second. _

_Despite his playboy ways, he did enjoy a few minutes of cuddle as they caught their breath. She was already rolling out of the bed and walking towards the mirror, fixing her hair. He rolled to look at her. She was pretty, and had a banging body, he thought to himself. But what the hell, they just had sex, and there she was primping. Aren't girls supposed to want to cuddle? Shouldn't I be the one who rolls his eyes at the cuddles? he wondered. "So, Nate, I was thinking, we should hit up the parties tonight, and then maybe lunch tomorrow in the Main Caf, and then, you could walk me to my sorority meeting. I could meet you after practice tomorrow too?" she said, without looking over at him. _

_Ahhh, he thought to himself. There it is. She was worse, in his mind, than one of the girls, who he had sex with after a drunken party. At least those girls were after satisfaction. This girl wanted to land a boyfriend using sex. "Um, actually, I have a test tomorrow, so I wasn't planning on going to any parties, and I never do lunch in the Main Caf, too many people, and I have study session in the afternoon before practice, so probably not," he said, as he stood up and began pulling his clothes on. "Oh," she said, without much emotion. "Well, at least let me walk you out," she muttered, sliding into a pair of pj bottoms and tight tank. _

_She walked him downstairs without touching him, until they reached the lounge of her dormitory. Then, she wrapped her arms around his, and gazed up at him. When they got to the doors, he smiled, and said, "So, Theresa, thanks, had fun." "Oh me too, babe, me too," she shrieked, "Can't wait to see you tomorrow!" Then, she grabbed his face and pressed a wet kiss on his lips, before turning and walking slowly through the lounge, a shit-eating grin on her face. _

_He walked out into the cold, and shook his head. He turned to look at the name of the dorm, Taylor. "Well, hope a future Ms. Wonderful doesn't live here, because I am never coming back," he muttered, pulling his phone out. He scrolled through the names until he found Theresa's number. He renamed her number Faker DNA, for Do Not Answer, and then punched speed dial 3 for Lucas. "Hey man, what are you up to?......Party at the KED house? Give me a half hour to grab a shower, and I will meet you there," he said, as he began walking back to his dorm. _

Nathan shook his head at the lousy memory, and then rolled his eyes. Sure, Theresa, and the others like her weren't the only reason he was done with parties. His grades couldn't afford an entire weekend of hung-over lounging, but he also couldn't stand the fakeness of the girls. If they weren't faking the orgasms, they were faking their interest in basketball so they could get close to him. At every party there were girls trying to get close to him, dressed in slutty shirts or short skirts, pressing their breasts against him. Some continued the act for a bit, and enjoyed the sex, but in the end, all they wanted was to be seen with him, to be known as Nathan Scott's girlfriend.

He wasn't opposed to having a girlfriend really. He liked girls; they were soft and warm and smelled good, and he liked the idea of having a girl to have sex with regularly, but he wanted a girl who wanted him, not just the idea of him. He felt the cool drip of the water from the melted ice bag running down his arm, and he smirked, as he drug his aching body from the bed, remembering how Haley has stuck her tongue between her lips in concentration as she wrapped his shoulder. She was sexy, but she was much more resistant to his lines and smirks. A couple times he thought he had caught her staring, but he couldn't tell if she was interested, she seemed so closed off.

"Whatever," he muttered, as he crawled back into bed. Might as well forget her like that, he told himself. Lucas really liked her roommate, and he didn't want his brother all pissy and squinty if he made his girlfriend's roommate uncomfortable. He couldn't stop himself from drifting off to sleep imagining her pink tongue resting on her soft lips.

"Wake up! Wake up!" Brooke crowed, as she jumped on Haley, straddling her stomach, and poking her cheeks. "Brooke, get off me!" Haley whined, trying to cover her face from the touching. "It's early, and I am tired, and you weigh a ton," she grumbled, knowing the last part wasn't entirely true, but it would piss Brooke off. "A ton! I will show you a ton," Brooke shrieked and bounced on Haley's stomach, causing her to groan. Finally, she rolled off and walked over to the shades, ripping them open, so that the bright sunlight poured in. "I hate you," Haley cried, as she rolled over and tried to burrow under the covers. "Nope!" Brooke shouted cheerfully, and yanked the covers off Haley. "Fine!" Haley yelled, as she shot up, rubbing her eyes, "What?!" "I just wanted to tell my best friend in the world about my date, and she doesn't want to hear," Brooke whispered, faking a sad face, and then threw herself onto her bed, face down. "Aww, Brookie Monster, I do want to hear, but just at a normal hour, honey," Haley said, going over to her bed, and rubbing her back. "I'll listen to the recap," she said kindly. "Really!" Brooke said happily as she rolled over and got socked in the face with Haley's pillow.

She looked up enraged at Haley, who was smirking as she tried to fix the blankets and sheets Brooke had pulled off her. The smirk fell when she felt the pillow hit her in the back of the head. "Brooke, you don't want to start this. The last time the RA came in because she thought I was killing you because you were shrieking so loud," Haley warned. "Fine," Brooke pouted. "But I do want to hear about your night," Haley said. "Ohhh, Tutor Girl, it was awesome," Brooke sighed dreamily. "We had dinner at this great Greek place, and then we went for a walk, and he pointed out constellations to me, and then we sat on a bench by the water, and he kissed me, like a really good one, with just the right amount of tongue, and then…" "Wait," Haley interrupted, "Just the right amount of tongue? What is the right amount of tongue?"

"I would show you but you have stinky morning breath, and I am freshly brushed, so nah," Brooke sing-songed, as she put on some lip gloss. "Brooke, seriously," Haley said, rolling her eyes, "I didn't expect you to kiss me." "Oh well, the right amount of tongue is where it is more than just that annoying darting in and out, but not tickling the back of your throat," Brooke explained, as she fastened her earrings. "Ahh, clearly," Haley said, as she placed the last pillow on her perfectly made bed. "Why all the primping? Are you actually showered this early?" Haley said shockingly, grabbing her chest for extra emphasis. "You aren't usually up and showered this early on the weekdays." "Well, Tutor Bitch," Brooke said, sticking her tongue out, "On the weekdays, I don't have breakfast plans with my boyfriend."

"Oh, a morning date, how sweet," Haley teased. "C'mon, I want you to meet him," Brooke said, tossing a sweatshirt on to Haley's bed. "Pull this on and go brush your stinky teeth, and let's go!" "Brooke, I don't like to go to the Caf, unshowered, and to meet your boyfriend the first time. I am surprised you don't have a full outfit complete with makeover planned," Haley teased, as she pulled the sweatshirt over her head.

"Ha Ha! Tutor Girl, you are so full of the funny this morning. We are meeting Luke in 15 minutes, and quite frankly the more rumpled you look, the better I look, not that I need help looking hot, so I don't care. Lucas only has eyes for me," she whispered dreamily. "Gag," Haley said, sticking her toothbrush in her mouth, and grabbing her toothpaste and a hand towel as she shoved her feet in her slippers. "Be right back."

10 minutes later, Brooke was dragging Haley down the sidewalk towards the Caf. Haley had irritated her by insisting on changing into jeans, but Brooke drew the line at anything further. Haley had grabbed a baseball cap from her dresser as Brooke yanked her out the door. "Ooh, there he is! Isn't he fine!" Brooke whispered happily. "Yeah, really fi.." Haley stopped abruptly. There with Lucas, squinting in the sunlight, and running his hand through his mussed hair was Nathan. "Oh shit," Haley breathed. She could not let him see her like this. Old sweatshirt, jeans with a hole in the knee, and a baseball cap. Ugh. "Brooke, um I just remembered, I have to tutor someone this morning, I can't stay and have breakfast. I need to run back and get my stuff and head over to the library," she rushed out, trying to pull away before they were noticed. "No, Hales, you have to come," Brooke whined, tightening her grip, dragging them with one arm and raising her other to wave to Lucas.

Oh well, Haley thought, he has seen us, as Lucas broke into a grin and nudged Nathan, gesturing towards the girls. She plastered a smile on her face, and let Brooke drag her closer. "Hi honey," Brooke squealed, and then released Haley's arm from its death grip to wrap her arms around Lucas' neck. He buried his face in her neck and breathed in, placing a small kiss on the exposed skin. "You smell great," he murmured, pulling back to look at her, and then leaning in and leaving a tender kiss on her lips. "And you taste better," he whispered with a smile. "So sweet," Brooke said happily touching his cheek.

Nathan cleared his throat. He loved his brother, and he was glad he was happy, but what the hell? First he wakes him up, stomping around the room, forces him to come to breakfast at an ungodly hour, and then makes out. He glanced over and realized it was Haley, standing there chewing her lip. He hadn't really paid attention, as he watched Lucas engage in foreplay with his girlfriend, but it was definitely Haley. "Hi!" he said, a little more excitedly than he planned. "Hi Nathan," she said back, trying to match his enthusiasm. Why, God, why? she asked herself. Why didn't I wake up as early as I usually do, so at least my hair would be clean and I wouldn't be wearing this stupid hat, she asked herself. You know why you didn't wake up early, her inner voice taunted. You were dreaming about Nathan all night. How perfectly sexy he would be first thing in the morning. At least your fantasies were correct, he is perfectly rumpled first thing in the morning, she mused, trying to banish the evil inner voice teasing her.

Brooke was shaken out of her Lucas fog when she heard Nathan and Haley speaking. "Tutor Girl, how do you know Nathan?" she asked confused. "Oh we met last night," Haley said. Nathan interrupted, "I went to soak in the tub after practice because my legs hurt, and she helped me with some ice." "Yeah, I put ice on his shoulder, and then he rubbed my hand," she blurted. All three looked at her, Brooke and Lucas looked confused, Nathan wore a slight smirk, remembering how her hand felt and puffing with cockiness that she remembered too.

"I mean, I was helping, and then my hand got cold, and then he said, 'Haley, your hand is cold,' and then he stuck it in the warm water, and then…." she trailed off. I am an idiot, she thought. A complete blabbering moron. "Any way," she said, her voice a little squeakier than she would have liked, "I just remembered I have an early tutoring session, and I have to go, so nice to see you again Nathan. Great to meet you, Lucas; see you later, Brooke." She pivoted quickly and began charging towards her dormitory, willing the hot angry tears building in her eyes not to fall. "What a complete fool I made of myself," Haley murmured, as she quickly entered the building and ran to her room. Once she was inside the room, she let the tears fall. She had promised herself that she wouldn't allow herself to cry for another guy again, not after the Tim disaster. And while she wasn't really crying for Nathan, she was just so embarrassed that she had talked about the hand-holding. It wasn't even really hand-holding, she told herself. He was just being a nice guy, since Brooke dates Lucas, and she had to bring it up. It will probably be awkward now.

She forced herself to stop crying, rubbing at her eyes with her fists. She undressed quickly, put on her robe, and grabbed her shower caddy, while sliding her feet into her shower flip flops. She headed down the hall towards the showers. When she got back 20 minutes later, she hurriedly dressed and grabbed her books and laptop and headed towards the library. She figured Brooke would be peeved at her for her silly behavior at breakfast, but no matter how mad at her she was, Brooke wouldn't go into the library to see her out. As soon as Haley walked through the doors of the library, she felt calmer. It was something about the books, or the quiet, but the library always helped her feel better.

She felt her phone buzz with a text message. She pulled it out and looked,

**Hey Tutor Girl! Sorry couldnt join us. Missed you! Left a muffin and apple on your desk. Spending the day with Lucas. Call me for dinner! Love you!**

Haley grinned. Brooke was great, so in love with Lucas she didn't even notice that Haley was acting like a freak. She wrote back,

**Me too! At library all day. Ttyl. Love you too!**

She shoved the phone in her pocket and headed towards a table to spread her books out and get to studying. She felt her phone vibrate again.

**And Nathan said you were great last night. Couldn't stop talking about you at breakfast! I want the details later! Kisses!**

Haley groaned. Poor Nathan probably thought she was a socially awkward freak now. Maybe Tim was right, she should look into some lessons on How to Behave with the Opposite Sex. She grumbled slightly as she began opening her books and studying, imagining the questioning she was going to get from Brooke later.

A/N 2: Just another note. The Theresa character is the same actress as on OTH, but again, not the same character. Just like the Tim situation.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hey all! I am trying to get as much of this story written as possible, since I will be back to teaching next week and I won't have nearly the time I would like to devote to it. Hence, the regular updates. If all goes as planned, I should be able to get a lot of it written, and then, depending what kind of reviews I am getting, I can post every couple of days or wait a little longer in between updates.

Also, so excited, just tracked my Season 6 DVDs and they should be arriving tomorrow!!! Can't wait. Even though I didn't love Season 6 and I thought that there was a bit too much Leyton for my taste, I still can't wait to get the DVDs!

Read and Review!

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Nathan was lying on his bed trying to concentrate on his Business Administration readings but between Lucas' annoying humming and his grumbling stomach, it was hard to focus. "Dude, shut up," he bit out, as he threw his half-full water bottle at Lucas' head. Score! The bottle hit him in the back of the head and then fell to the floor rolling under Lucas' head. Lucas looked up surprised and irritated at his brother who was smirking on the bed. "Nate, what the hell, man?!" he grunted, rubbing the spot where the bottle hit. "Listen, Luke, I know you are happy and all but I can't listen to you humming off key over there like a love sick school girl," Nathan complained. "Just be quiet, or better yet, leave and go see Brooke," he suggested.

"Nah, as much as I want to see her, she is having dinner with Haley tonight," Lucas said, rising from his desk to go to his bed and flop down on it, picking up the remote control. Nathan's ears perked up at the mention of Haley. He was pretty excited to see her, once he tore his burning eyes away from the hideousness of his brother making out with Brooke. But then she got a little strange and ran off. He thought for a second that there might be something there, since she mentioned the hand thing, but then he dismissed it when she ran off. He must have freaked her out by grabbing her hand the night before, and then she got weirded out at the idea of eating breakfast with him. He had been hoping she would stay not only to alleviate the awkwardness of sitting with Lucas and Brooke, or Brucas as Brooke so annoyingly coined the couple, but also to get to know her a little better. He couldn't stop thinking about her as he fell asleep and all throughout the night; he kept waking up with a vision of her blushing in his mind.

"Well, where are they eating? I mean, we could go meet them, and then you could stop irritating me. I mean, if you are this annoying Brooke must be annoying the hell out of Haley too," Nathan offered, trying to feign a nonchalant attitude. "I am calling Brooke later, but she said she needed some alone time with Haley," Lucas said offhandedly, flicking through the channels before stopping on ESPN. Dammit, Nathan thought to himself. Now I can't see Haley because of stupid roommate bonding, and I am stuck here with Pucas, who is disgustingly in love.

"I am going for a run," Nathan said, standing up to pull on his sneakers. "Dude, you ran 5 miles today at the gym already," Lucas said, "Don't push too hard, you might pull something and then who the hell is going to help me win the next couple games?" Lucas said. "Help you? Dude, you must be in an alternate universe because no one is helping you, you all are helping me," Nathan replied with a smirk, "and frankly, I would rather risk injury than listen to you hum My Girl under your breath one more time, bitch" Nathan shot back.

"Ha Ha, just wait until you are in love, ass," Lucas called, "I'll meet you at the Caf for dinner in a half hour." "Yeah, wait until I am in love," Nathan muttered under his breath, as he stuck his ear buds in his ears and turned up the volume loud, "Fat chance."

"So, we have our dinners, you got your drink, and extra napkins, and another fork because the first fork seemed spotty, so now that we have everything we need, you can stop stalling and just spill, what's the deal with you and Nathan," Brooke asked, as she speared a broccoli floret. Haley looked at her. She could tell that Brooke wouldn't take a 'Nothing' answer, so she had to give her something. "Brooke, seriously, not a big deal," Haley replied. "I was in the Trainer's office, doing your job," she said raising her eyebrows expressively, "and he came in, soaked in the hot tub; I brought him a bag of ice for his shoulder, we talked for a minute about you and Lucas, and then I wrapped the ice on his shoulder," Haley said shrugging her shoulders, as if the whole interaction meant nothing to her and was not the fuel for some seriously dirty thoughts.

"Wait, you talked about me and Lucas? What did you say? Who brought it up? Tell me exactly what went down," Brooke demanded, kinking her eyebrow. Ahh there's my Brooke, Haley thought smugly to herself. She would get so caught up now in dissecting she and Lucas that Haley wouldn't have to reveal anything further about her meeting with Nathan. "He asked me my name, and when I told him, he said, 'Oh Haley James that lives with Brooke Davis?' and I said 'That's me, how did you know?' and he said, 'My brother dates her,'" Haley recounted. "That's it?" Brooke squealed. "Nothing else?" "Oh yeah, how could I forget, he said, 'Sometimes at night I hear Lucas moaning your friend's name over and over and then in the morning there are a ton of Kleenex in the trashcan,'" Haley retorted, stabbing a piece of Brooke's broccoli. "Ooh, shut up, I hate you," Brooke snapped, sliding her plate away from Haley's fork, as she attempted to swoop in for another piece of broccoli. "No, seriously, he said something like, 'Lucas really seems to like her,' and I said, 'Yeah, Brooke really likes him too,'" Haley said, focusing on her own plate of pasta. " Wait, 'Lucas really _seems_ to like her?'" she asked, or 'Lucas _really_ seems to like her,'" Brooke questioned. "What is the difference?" Haley muttered, twirling some spaghetti on her fork. "Haley, come on, it's been a while since you were in a relationship, but please don't tell me you have lost the art of dissection. You had a critical conversation with Nathan that could determine my whole romantic future, now, I will ask you again, focus, where was the inflection?" Brooke demanded.

Haley thought for a minute. Which was the right answer? She really couldn't remember if there was inflection, nor could she remember if Nathan even used the word _seems_ at all. But she dare not bring up that possibility for fear of being brought before the Brooke Davis fire squad again. She inhaled, and looked Brooke straight in the eyes. "He said, 'Lucas _really_ seems to like her,' emphasis on really." Brooke grinned and clasped her hands to her heart, practically swooning. Haley exhaled. Score one for Haley, she thought to herself. Way to dodge that bullet.

"I think this really means something. I mean, he must talk an awful lot about me if his brother remembers the name of my roommate. I mean, I know I have mentioned you, because you are really important to me," she said, batting her eyes at Haley, who in turn rolled hers, "but you are my roommate, so for one roommate to talk to another roommate about his girlfriend's roommate, must be pretty serious, right?" she asked.

Haley fought the urge to roll her eyes again, since at this point she had rolled them so many times in the past few minutes she was afraid they were going to unscrew and roll out of her head. "Yes, Brooke, I think it is clear that Lucas is passionately in love with you, since Nathan knew I was your roommate," Haley said, trying to look at serious as possible. "Me too!" said Brooke, miss the sarcasm dripping from Haley's voice.

"So now that we have figured out that Team Brucas is on the right road of 2.3 children and white picket fence, what about Team Naley?" Brooke asked, pausing to sip her water, "I mean, something happened, or else you wouldn't have freaked out this morning and rambled about your cold fingers, and then run off." Damn Brooke, thought Haley for 10 time in the past two days. She thought she would be able to sit here, finish her pasta and then go back to the room and watch TV ignoring Brooke's chatter about the differences between A-line and empire waist wedding gowns as she planned her future nuptials to Lucas. But for some reason, Brooke seemed stuck on this whole Nathan story.

"Nothing, it was just a little odd. I was sitting on the hot tub, holding the ice on his arm, and then he grabbed my hand, when I went to stand up, and said something about my fingers being cold, and he rubbed them under the water until they were warm," Haley said, as she buttered a piece of roll very carefully, trying to avoid eye contact with Brooke. "Holy hell, Hales," Brooke whispered. "Good alliteration," Haley said. "Okay, I don't know what that word means, but thanks. Anyway, that was like totally hot pre-hot tub sex!" Brooke stated matter-of-factly, as she shoveled a bite of chicken into her mouth. "Nah, he was just being nice, probably because Lucas is dating you. Speaking of Lucas," Haley started. "Don't even think about trying to get me off topic by bringing up my sexy boyfriend. He was flirting with you, Hales. Are you blind?" she said.

"Brooke, don't be ridiculous. He is a nice guy. He was being nice because I brought him the ice and because his brother is dating you, and because it is the right thing to do. Since I imagine we will probably be spending some time in a group," Haley replied, desperately wanting to end the conversation. All this retelling was reminding her of how nice it felt to have Nathan's finger gently massaging hers. "Okay, fine, but I say we keep an eye on it. Like covertly," Brooke suggested. "Great, you do that," Haley retorted. "Oh yeah, speaking of group hangs, we are going out on Friday," Brooke said, stealing Haley's perfectly buttered roll. "Brooke, that's mine, and what do you mean, speaking of group hangs?" Haley whined. "Me, Lucas, you and Nathan, Friday night, miniature golfing. Totally cute right?" Brooke said, clapping her hands together. "No, totally not. First of all, it's January, second of all, what if I have plans?" Haley questioned.

"Hales, I love you, but you don't have plans," Brooke replied, "Now come on, let's grab some cookies, and head back to the room, so I can have naughty IM conversations with Lucas." Haley stood up, and grabbed her tray walking towards the trash. Great, a perfect little "double date." I can keep a tally sheet of the number of times I stick my foot in my own mouth, she mused to herself.

The rest of the week seemed to pass by without much mention of Nathan, much to Haley's joy. Brooke was positively smitten, and had been out of the room constantly spending time with Lucas. The one night that Lucas hung out in their room, Haley got the chance to speak with him, and he seemed like a genuinely nice guy. They talked about music and books and realized that they have the same English Lit class only they were in two different sections. They were getting along great, until Brooke started pouting that she felt left out, and Lucas, sweetly, changed the subject to Brooke, to avoid her whining.

Haley was really happy for Brooke, but secretly a little disappointed. She missed roommate time with her best friend, and even though she had sworn off guys after the disastrous time with Tim, it stung a little that she was alone. Finally, Friday night arrived, and Haley and Brooke were getting ready to go out. Brooke had skipped her afternoon class to spend the time selecting their outfits and preparing her face and hair. When Haley stumbled into the room 35 minutes later than Brooke demanded, Brooke attacked her with a curling iron and eye pencil. When Brooke finally backed off, after much protest from Haley, Haley peeked in the mirror. Even though she fussed when Brooke treated her like her own personal life-sized Barbie, she did do a good job. She had curled Haley's long brown hair into soft waves and let them cascade down her back. She played up her big brown eyes with deep brown eye shadow, leaving the rest of her porcelain skin fairly untouched, just a couple sweeps of a light blush, and some clear gloss. She looked really nice, simple, classic, and not to over the top. Haley smiled at Brooke, "Thanks, Brooke, you did a wonderful job," she said.

"Ah it was nothing; you are so pretty naturally that it is easy," Brooke said kindly, and then spun Haley around. "Okay, here is the outfit you are wearing. I picked out these jeans, because your butt looks nice in them. Then, I have this black sweater. I usually don't support sweaters on dates, but since we are going to be outside, I can make an exception. Plus, your boobs look good in it," Brooke rambled, gesturing towards Haley's chest. "Brooke, this isn't a date, I mean, for me. You and Lucas, sure, but not me and Nathan, we are just friends with the couple, okay," Haley rushed out. She really didn't want things to get any more awkward with Nathan, nor did she want to feel any pressure. "Whatever you say, Tutor Spaz, but Lucas said that Nathan said that he was excited," Brooke teased.

Whoa, Nathan was excited. Haley felt her heart pound a little harder. She looked at Brooke and couldn't tell if this was Brooke's fantasy, or if it were true. "Whatever," Haley said, "Let's just go."

Miniature golf went rather well. They played a couple rounds and Haley exhibited her skills, winning twice. Nathan and Lucas took the losses well, whereas Brooke attempted to cheat whenever possible. When the group admonished her for trying to move her ball, she started attempting to throw the others' swings, by scaring them or pinching their butts. After they had played for a while, Brooke began whining she was cold. Haley teased her for wanting to avoid being beaten a third time, but admitted she was cold too. They headed to the concession stand attached to the golf course to get some hot chocolate. Brooke and Lucas took off in the lead, with Brooke begging Lucas to get her extra marshmallows.

Nathan and Haley followed behind them, returning their golf clubs. "So, this was fun," Nathan said, looking at Haley, as she reached up to hang her club on the rack. She looks so great, he thought to himself. Her hair is so shiny and silky. He wanted to run his fingers along it and see if it felt as soft as it looked. When she turned, he was right behind her and she bumped into him. "Umph," she said, as she walked into his shoulder. Way to go Scott, he thought. "Sorry, Haley," he whispered. "Not a problem," she replied, flashing a smile. As she walked past, he caught a whiff of her. He couldn't tell if it was her hair or perfume or just her, but it smelled so good, he had to force himself not to grab her and breathe her in until he knew what part of her smelled so good.

"Yeah, so this was fun, even if Brooke is a baby," Haley said. Stop thinking about his eyes, don't think about how blue and perfect they are, she told herself. When she had bumped into him, like a klutz and looked up at him, she had stared into his eyes. They were so blue. When she got home tonight, she was going to research blues to determine what color they were. They weren't navy, cyan, or sky blue. There had to be a name for them, and if there wasn't this blue was forever going to be known to her as Nathan Blue.

"So want to go get a hot chocolate?" he asked. "Yeah," she breathed, trying to avoid falling into the trance of his eyes again. They wandered into the concession stand. Brooke and Lucas were snuggled on a bench sipping their drinks. Nathan walked up to the counter, and ordered two hot chocolates, then he turned to Haley, "Whipped cream?" he asked. Yes, sir, she thought, all over you and then I will lick it off. "Yeah, please," she replied, trying to erase the image of his naked chest covered in whipped cream. By the time they walked over to Lucas and Brooke, they were already nearly finished their drinks. Brooke looked at Nathan and Haley and said, "Okay, we are done our hot chocolates so we are going to go stand by the car and make out until you are ready." She grabbed Lucas' hand and dragged him out the door towards the lot.

"Well, that's Brooke, for you," Haley said, laughing weakly. Great, now I am here with sexy Nathan and his sexy Nathan blue eyes, and we have to make small talk, which God knows I suck at doing. She smiled and then lifted her cup to blow on her drink.

Nathan forced himself not to groan as he watched her lips form a perfect circle and blow on her drink. He wanted to lean forward and press a light kiss on her lips, but considering she was still probably freaked about last Friday's inappropriate touching, he resisted. There was something about her that he really liked but there seemed to be a part of her that was holding back too.

She sipped her drink carefully, wanting to avoid getting burned by the hot liquid, just as she took a sip, she looked up at Nathan and caught his eye again, getting momentarily lost in the deep blue pools. She saw him grin, and she smiled back, "What's so funny?" she asked, amazed at how breathless her voice was. "Nothing, you have a little," and he gestured towards her face. She felt herself start to blush. Great now I have something on my face, she groaned to herself. "Here," he whispered, "Let me." He reached over and let the side of his thumb graze her top lip, wiping the small smear of whipped cream away. Then, without even thinking, he raised his thumb and licked it. So sweet, he thought, and smiled at her. She smiled back, still blushing, and Nathan felt himself leaning in a little, wanting to capture more of her sweetness with his lips.

Oh my God, Oh My God, OH MY GOD, she was yelling in her head. He touched my mouth, and then he licked it. She felt the butterflies flapping in her stomach and her heart was pounding. She replayed the image of the tip of his tongue touching his thumb to lick the whipped cream and she wanted more than anything to feel that tongue on her lips, on her tongue. Wait, he is leaning in, she thought frantically, he is going to try and kiss me, and I can't, oh my God, Nathan Scott is leaning in.

"So," Haley said, looking down at her hands, breaking the stare, "Brooke and Lucas are probably about 2 minutes away from being arrested for public lewdness, so we should probably go." Nathan blinked his eyes and leaned back. Smooth, very smooth, he thought to himself. "Uh, yeah, let's go," he muttered, standing up.

They walked to the doors, and he opened it for her. She murmured thanks but avoided looking at him. When they reached the car, they were both pleased to see that Brooke and Lucas were not in a state of undress, and thankfully, Brooke was feeling chatty so she led the conversation recounting the evening's events including her valiant attempts to win, and how she was thwarted by her unkind and more coordinated friends.

Nathan pulled up alongside Haley and Brooke's dormitory to drop them off. "There you go, ladies," he said, "Door to door service." Brooke jumped out of the backseat and pulled open the passenger side door, to give Lucas a goodbye kiss, and Haley called her thanks and goodbye to both boys and headed towards the building.

Brooke broke away from Nathan and bounded up to Haley. "So much fun, right, Hales?" she asked as she linked arms with her. "Yup," Haley replied, "So much."


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hey guys! Posting the next chapter now, but they will probably be coming more sparingly. Hope you enjoy; reviews slowed down a bit, so I hope I am not losing anyone! I have mapped out where this is going, so we are about a third of the way done. FYI, I am hardcore Naley, so please know that's end game for me.

Please review and let me know what you think!

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Lucas broke into a run to catch up to Nathan. "Hey, Nate," he said, as he tapped him on the shoulder, "I called your name." Nathan jerked slightly when he first felt someone grab his arm, but then he looked over, saw it was his brother, shot him a small smile, and slowed his speed so Lucas could fall into stride. "Sorry, I must have been spaced out," Nathan said. "What's up?" "What's up? Nothing man, I just feel like I haven't seen you recently," Lucas said, shrugging. "I mean we are at practice together, and but other than that, I haven't really seen you around." "Oh yeah, well, I have been busy," Nathan said noncommittally.

To be honest, Nathan had been avoiding Luke a bit. After the slightly awkward Friday night outing, he had ignored Lucas' requests to eat with Haley and Brooke, and then when Brooke had showed up at their room the other night; he headed over to the gym for the second time that day. In fact, he had been spending a lot of extra time in the gym. Every time he thought about Haley, which was all the time, he was so worked up that he turn his pent up sexual energy into working out. He had been on fire on the court at practice and he had his all time highest scores during the two games they had in the past week.

"Yeah, busy avoiding me, or maybe it's Brooke you're avoiding," Lucas bit out harshly. "Listen, Nathan, I don't know who you are avoiding, but it's kind of starting to get to Brooke. She got a little sad the other night when you left as soon as she got there. She is starting to think you hate her for some reason. Did something happen?" Lucas asked. Leave it to his dumb brother to totally miss what was going on, Nathan thought to himself.

"Nah man, I just hate being the third wheel," Nathan tried to explain. "Well then why didn't you want to eat with Haley and Brooke and I the other night? You and Haley seemed fine when we went out on Friday," Lucas continued. Yeah, Nathan thought, fine until I almost licked her face. "Is that it?" Lucas asked stopping and standing still, "Do you not like Haley?"

God, my brother is a serious moron, Nathan thought. "No, not at all," Nathan said quickly. "Well, then what?" Lucas said. "Listen don't worry about it, no big deal, sorry for being a dick," Nathan continued, starting to walk again. "No man, listen, tell me now, before I get pissed," Lucas yelled after him. "Fine!" Nathan shouted back, "Let's go grab something to eat and I will tell you." Lucas jogged over and they headed into the nearest lounge that served light food and drinks.

Well, here it goes, Nathan thought, I might as well confess, end this weirdness, be laughed at by my brother. "So…." said Lucas after they sat down with a couple soft pretzels and sodas. " Okay fine, I think I kindalikeHaley," Nathan rushed. "Whoa, you kinda like Haley?" Lucas repeated loudly. "Dude, shut up," Nathan replied looking around the room. "I mean, I don't really know. I just felt something when I met her the first time, and every time I look at her I have these thoughts," "Like what kind of thoughts?" Lucas interrupted. "Like the kind of thoughts that would make Mom disappointed that I am her son, and make Dad pound me on the back and call me a chip off the old block," admitted Nathan. "Oh, ew," Lucas said, wrinkling his nose in disgust at the reference. "So as gross as that mental image was, and believe me, ew, what are you going to do?"

"Do? As in take an action? Nothing, absolutely nothing. I mean, there was a moment when we went out, but…" Nathan trailed off. "A moment," Lucas said, "Explain."

"I wiped some whipped cream off her lip and we were looking at each other and I was leaning in to kiss her, and she just kind of stopped, and said, let's go," Nathan explained. "Smooth," smirked Lucas.

"Ha ha, dick, any way, there have been other times, but whenever there might be an in for something, anything, not even something physical, just a nice moment, she always looks away or leaves or says something," Nathan continued, gesturing weakly. "So maybe she isn't interested, Nate, I mean, I know it's hard to imagine, but see, not _all_ girls want you," Lucas teased. "Again, shut it, dick," Nathan gritted, "I am not imagining things, sometimes she seems totally into it, and then it's like she gets scared or nervous and she backs off."

Lucas exhaled, took a long sip of his soda, and chewed thoughtfully on the rest of his pretzel. "Tell you what, Little Brother," Lucas said. Nathan interrupted, "Cut it with the little brother, you are like 10 minutes older than me," Nathan said. "Ten minutes and 27 seconds," Lucas retorted. "Besides," Nathan said with a smirk, "We both know I am the bigger brother."

"First, yeah right, second stop talking about your junk, it's gross," Lucas shuddered. "I have an idea, and I am not going to help you now." "No, dude, sorry, please," Nathan said, in a needy voice. "Okay, even though you are begging like a bitch, I will help you. Some recon, if you will," Lucas said with a smile. "Recon? How?" Nathan asked. "Easy, Brooke," Lucas replied with a shrug.

"No way. Brooke isn't subtle. She will just tell her," Nathan pleaded. "Not if I don't tell her what I am asking," Lucas said slowly. "I will just ask about Haley, generally, and then report back." "Okay," Nathan hesitated, "But make sure you are stealth." "Dude, no worries, I am totally cool," Lucas said, standing up, and then tripping over his school bag. "Yeah, totally cool," Nathan muttered, offering him a hand up.

"Hello, Tutor Girl," Brooke yelled, as she waltzed into the dorm. "Hello, Brooke," Haley replied in the same tone, without looking up from her laptop. "Seriously, Haley, I have something big to talk to you about," Brooke said seriously, pacing back and forth in front of Haley's desk. "What?" Haley asked incredulously, "Is there a shopping emergency? Or let me guess, Lucas has a cold!" she said in a sarcastic voice. "Okay lose the 'tude, dude," Brooke said cockily, "This is about you and a certain tall, dark and handsome basketball God slash brother that we both know."

Haley tried to still her pounding heart. In the days since their group hang, Nathan had been MIA. She had agreed to go to a couple meals with Brooke and Lucas and she could tell that the reason Nathan wasn't there was her and the way she freaked out like a baby when he leaned in to kiss her. She had replayed the night in her head a million times, and every time instead of getting up and talking, she leaned in and let his lips graze gently over hers, before she lifted her hand to cradle his…

"Earth to Haley," Brooke yelled, her hands cupped around her mouth, "Dude you totally spaced out on thinking about Nathan?" she teased, kinking her eyebrow. "Okay, hah ha Brooke, I will bite, what is up with Nathan?" Haley asked, not making eye contact.

"Well let me tell you, I just had the most ridiculous conversation with Lucas….."

"_So listen, babe, how's Haley?" Lucas asked, as he traced gentle circles on the back of Brooke's hand with his thumb. Brooke looked at him warily, "Why?" she asked. "Oh no reason, just wanted to see how my girlfriend's best friend is doing," he said with a grin. Okay, so he is up to something, Brooke thought; let's see how quickly he will crack. Brooke leaned her head back on to Lucas' chest and began trailing her fingers up and down his chest. She paused briefly over his heart and could feel it beginning to pound. Perfect, she thought to herself. "Aww, that's sweet, Luke," she murmured, pressing a kiss into the exposed skin on his neck. She felt him draw in his breath sharply. Like taking candy from a baby, she giggled to herself. _

"_Haley's good. She's been busy but good," Brooke said, concentrating her slow strokes on Lucas' stomach. "Oh," Lucas breathed shakily. Be cool man, be cool, he thought to himself, it's just her fingers. She touching you over your shirt, you can handle it. Just then, Brooke's fingers started grazing his skin under his shirt, still safely around his belly button, but touching the skin nonetheless. "I was just wondering, you know, if she was seeing anyone, like from home. I mean, you and I are great," he pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "But I wonder if she is ever lonely."_

_Ahh, thought Brooke, okay, so some friend of his likes Haley and he is trying to get the dirt. "Oh?" she said noncommittally, lowering her fingers slowly so they traced back and forth along the top of his pants. She could feel his stomach muscles quivering. Lucas continued, "I mean, Nathan seems lonely sometimes to me, since we've been together, and so I thought maybe Haley was too." Score! Brooke was so proud of herself that she momentarily forgot the information she had received. She couldn't believe how quickly Luke had given away the truth. "Oh?" she said again, stroking just below his pants. By now Lucas couldn't take a deep breath, all he could concentrate on was Brooke's fingers. _

"_Uh huh," he breathed, tightening his grip on her other hand instinctively. Brooke realized she probably couldn't get much more from him in this state. She looked up and saw his eyes half closed and that he was biting his lower lip. Aww, that's my love, she thought, so turned on by some innocent touches. I will thank him for cracking like a ripe melon without even realizing it. She slid up quickly to capture Lucas' lips in a passionate kiss, while her hands quickly opened his fly and gripped his hard cock. Lucas exhaled and thought to himself, Damn, and I didn't even give anything away. He continued kissing her as their hands began roaming each other's bodies._

"Okay, Brooke, stop, I don't need a play by play of the sexual escapades you engaged in this afternoon," Haley barked, covering her ears. "Well, Haley, let me just say, the things I do for you…. speaking of which, do you have any floss?" Brooke asked. "Oh god, ew, ew, ew," Haley shrieked.

"Ha! It's so funny to get you all riled up!" Brooke joked. "Seriously though, I think Nathan has the hots for you. Do you like him?"

Um yes, affirmative, absolutely, without a doubt, Haley thought. "I'm not sure," she said looking away from Brooke's intense stare. "Okay," Brooke replied, "That obviously means yes, but you're not sure if he likes you."

Brooke may be a lot of things, Haley thought to herself, but a dumb-dumb she is not. "Okay, I mean he was nice when I first met him, and then the other night he was great too. And obviously, he is attractive…." she trailed off, concentrating on some invisible lint on her pants.

"Well now that we know he is interested…." Brooke started. "Wait, we don't know," Haley interrupted. "Yes we do. I like Lucas a ton; he is a sweetie, but he is not stealth, nor is he subtle. The poor baby probably told Nathan that he would dig up some dirt, but then a couple of Brooke Davis' fingers later, and he forgot about what he was doing."

"So what if he did say something? Haley said. "You know how I feel about dating." "No, Hales, I know how you feel about that shit for brains Tim. Nathan is a good guy; you should get back out there. Let me see if I can get a little more info out of Lucas when I see him later, and we'll move forward from there. Now I am going to grab a quick shower, talk to you later!" she said, as she grabbed her shower gear and darted out of the room.

Haley tried to get back to her work. What if Nathan did like her? What if he was interested? She knew that he was going to kiss her the other day, but she had convinced herself it was just something that happened in the moment. After all, most of the girls on campus were throwing themselves at him. And he is really hot. She packed up her books for her Math class and left the room to try to forget the problem until Brooke did a little more digging.

Several hours later, Lucas staggered into his room. Nathan looked up when he saw him come in and smirked. "Dude, what happened to you?" "Brooke," Lucas croaked, "when she gets her mind set on something, wow…."

_Lucas knocked on Brooke's door. The door flew open, and there was Brooke, wrapped up in her fuzzy pink robe. "Hi," she whispered softly, grabbing his hand and pulling him inside. "So, Luke, I have been thinking, maybe we shouldn't wait anymore," she purred, stroking the back of his neck. "Wait? Oh you mean, __**wait**__," he said. "Yeah, I mean, we really like each other, and..." Lucas interrupted her, "Brooke, I don't just like you, I, I, I, I love you," he blurted, grabbing her hands. She felt the tears prick her eyes. He loved her! He loves me! Oh my God!_

"_Oh Luke! I love you too! I just didn't think you did!" she breathed, pressing kisses into his neck up to her lips. Lucas felt better than he had ever felt before. He had never told a girl that he loved her, and it felt better than winning a basketball game, or beating Nathan at NBA Live, or even kissing Brooke. And kissing Brooke was pretty great. _

_Brooke felt her heart pounding, as they fell onto the bed kissing. Wow, she thought to herself, he loves me. She had wanted to sleep with Lucas soon, and she hadn't really thought of it as a reward or trick in exchange for information about Nathan, but now that he loved her, she was even more sure that she wanted to make love to him. _

_As focused as she was on his perfect fingers that had untied the belt to her robe and were currently stroking her nipples, she knew that she owed it to Haley to get the information she promised. Especially considering she was probably going to be kicking her out of their room a lot more often. _

"_Listen, Luke, I love you, and I am so glad that we said this to each other. And I am so glad that we are going to make love. I appreciate you waiting for me to be ready. I have been quick to move forward in a relationship in the past, but I really wanted us to be special, so thank you," she whispered, staring into his eyes. "Baby, you don't have to thank me. I would love you whether or not you were ready for sex," Lucas promised. _

"_See that's another reason why I love you," Brooke said. "Because you are good man. Some men aren't good. Like Haley's ex. He treated her really, really bad. In general and with regard to sex. Now I know that you were trying to get some information about Haley earlier, and I am guessing it was for Nathan, so just promise me one more thing, you let him know that he needs to go slow and treat her like a princess. She does like him, but she is scared. She is great, one of the best people I know, and she had a tough time with her ex, but her heart is wonderful," Brooke trailed off a bit, "Just let him know, that if he hurts her, even for a second, I will hurt him."_

"_Brooke, you are such a good friend. I will tell him. He is a good guy too, he would be good to her," Lucas promised his voice catching as her small hands grabbed his ass, and pulled their hips together. Wait, he found himself thinking, how did she figure it out? Suddenly any thoughts of Nathan or Haley or anything other than Brooke vanished as he felt her rock her hips against his bulging crotch._

"Okay, so you mean to tell me, that you not only told Brooke you loved her, had sex for the first time with her, spilled the beans about my feelings for Haley, found out that Haley has had a rough timewith her ex, and that she has feelings for me?" Nathan said slowly. Lucas nodded slightly from his splayed out position on his bed. "Wow man, big day," Nathan smirked. Lucas grunted, "You have no idea. The things I do for you, Little Brother." He rolled over and pulled the covers up.

"Okay, I am going out to try and wrap my mind around everything," Nathan said, as he tied his sneakers on and turned out the light. "Thanks." "No problem," Lucas said, "I told you I was good." "Yeah, right," Nathan laughed, closing the door. He headed over to the gym. Whenever he had something he needed to think about he needed to lift weights, it always made him clear his head.

Forty minutes later, Nathan walked out of the locker room after taking a shower. Surprisingly he preferred the showers in the locker room; the water pressure was better. He stopped into the weight room to get a bag of ice, and he was about to ask the student aide at the desk to help him wrap it, when he got an idea. He carefully stuck a roll of plastic wrap into his gym bag, telling himself he would return it tomorrow. Grabbing his bag of ice, he walked out of the Trainer's office and jogged over to Haley's dormitory. "Please let her be home," he muttered to himself.

After asking a few girls what room Haley and Brooke shared, he paused at the door. Suddenly it opened, as he was raising his hand to knock. Brooke looked up surprised. Without saying a word, she grinned, and ducked past him out the door. "Brooke, close the door tight," Haley said, without turning around, when she didn't hear the door catch.

Not wanting to scare her, he knocked on the open door. She spun around, surprised. Nathan. "Oh hi!" she said brightly. "Hi," he said back, "Can I come in?" Yeah sure, come in, sit on either bed, the purple one is mine, the pink on is Brooke's," she said, turning again to turn off the TV and try to calm her pounding heart. Nathan quickly sat on her bed, and pulled the plastic wrap from his bag. "So what brings you here," Haley asked, as she turned around. He held out the ice and the wrap, and smirked a little. "You do the best job. Your touch is perfect. Not too loose, not to tight," he said softly. "Can you help me?"

Haley felt her heart speed up. She couldn't speak, so she just nodded rapidly. She walked over and took the items from his hand. He raised his hand to the zipper of his jacket and felt his fingers shaking a little. He couldn't believe he was this nervous to be with her. Haley looked down and saw his hand shake a little. Without even realizing it, she covered his hand with hers, and gently drew the zipper down.

Their eyes were locked. When the zipper reached the bottom, Haley felt him jiggle it slightly so the two pieces would separate. When they came apart, she moved her hand to his uninjured shoulder, and slid the fabric down, letting her fingers touch his skin. His skin was hot to the touch. She couldn't tell if it was because he had been working out, or if he was otherwise worked up. She moved her hand to his wrist and helped him pull his hand free. As he pulled his hand out, still staring deep into her eyes, looking for hesitation, he shrugged his shoulder so the other sleeve would slide down. She placed the ice on his shoulder, and began wrapping the plastic slowly around it. This time, she let her fingers graze his skin as she moved. She stepped closer to him, standing with one leg on either side of his large thigh. She could feel his breath on her hands as she slowly continued to wrap the plastic around his shoulder.

Finally, she whispered, "How does that feel?" "Perfect," he whispered back, and leaned forward brushing his lips against hers. She gasped as she felt his lips brush hers gently, as if testing her. He pulled back, and raised his unencumbered arm so he could cup her cheek. "You're perfect," he breathed, and leaned in again. This time he pressed his mouth against hers more firmly, waiting for her to react. She hadn't pulled back, but her lips hadn't started to move against him, then, finally he felt her lips begin responding to his. So sweet and gentle. He sucked her top lip into his mouth, tasting her greedily, before releasing it to move to her bottom lip. She opened her mouth to him and allowed his tongue to tangle with hers. She could barely breathe it felt so good. She pressed against him more urgently and moved her hands to tangle in the hair on the nape of his neck.

He tried to lift his other arm so he could pull her closer, but he couldn't raise it since it was wrapped with the ice. "Damn," he swore, as he pulled back slightly. He dropped his hand from her cheek and moved it to his shoulder, trying to grab the wrap so he could remove it.

Haley stepped back when she felt his warmth pull away and looked up confused. "Oh Nathan, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. Did I bump it?" she asked. "No, no, I just wanted to loosen it so I could move my arm," he assured her. He reached out for her, expecting her to step into his embrace, but she backed up.

No, he thought to himself. Not again. "Haley," he said firmly, trying to show her that his arm was fine and that he wanted her to come closer. Oh god, Haley thought to herself, not again. This is why I didn't want to get involved. His tone is already changing, now that I pulled away. "Listen, Nathan, this was a mistake, a huge mistake, please just go," she said, trying to banish the quaver in her voice. He had to leave now before her tears fell. He looked at her eyes and saw them shining. "Haley," he said again, holding his hand out. What happened? Why is she crying?

"No," she said firmly, "Go." "Okay," he whispered, gathering his jacket and standing up. She stepped quickly out of his way, so that he wouldn't brush against her as he walked out. He turned and looked as he was leaving, telling himself that he couldn't leave her upset. He glanced quickly and walked out, shutting the door quietly behind him. As soon as she heard the click, she felt the hot tears roll down her cheeks.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hey! Next chapter, which if I were titling these chapters would probably be called the Aftermath. But any way, this was hard to write for me. It isn't entirely personal, but there are some feelings in here that I think a lot of us have unfortunately felt at one time or another, on either side, either as Haley or Nathan, so it was a challenge. I hope that it feels real to you. And that you don't think it is too fake or rushed. Let me know what you are thinking…..

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Haley felt the hot tears rolling down her cheeks. Her throat and heart were aching with the pain of holding in her sobs. Idiot, she thought to herself. You let yourself get caught up in the moment and you were blinded by all his sweet words. He didn't really mean it, she told herself. Finally, the sob ripped from her as she remembered how good it had felt when she thought he wanted her. He was certainly a good actor, she thought angrily. He made me feel good, wanted, and maybe even a little sexy.

She tried to push the thoughts of his lips on hers out of her mind, but before she could stop herself, she felt her fingers rise and touch her lips. She had never really thought of herself as a sexual being, considering before Tim, she had only ever kissed a couple guys. But kissing Nathan was unlike anything she had ever experienced. She could understand why girls let themselves get caught up with boys like him.

Suddenly, her memories of kissing Nathan began twirling in her head with her memories of Tim and their disaster of a relationship. Her face and mouth felt dirty where he had touched, and soon the rest of her body felt gross. She grabbed her shower caddy and jammed her feet into her shower shoes. She charged down the hall towards the bathroom, with her towel flung over her shoulder. Thankfully, there was a free shower stall. She quickly turned the water on, glanced around to see if there was anyone there, and pulled off her sweatpants and tee shirt. Normally she would never let her clothes just lay on the bathroom floor, but she felt so gross. She shrugged out of her panties and unhooked her bra, dropping them to the pile of clothes on the floor and stepped under the hot spray.

The water was almost uncomfortably warm, but she didn't move the dial. She stood there, with her palms resting on the wall, letting the water rush over her. She lifted her face to the spray and let the unclean feeling wash away. In that moment, she could hardly distinguish between Nathan and Tim. The small rational part of her that remained unclouded by her sadness understood that Nathan wasn't Tim, not even close. But the way Tim had made her feel when they were together had dirtied her and she couldn't shake the idea that all guys would look at her and feel the same things he had.

Grabbing her washcloth, she rubbed the bar of Dove soap against it vigorously, and then began rubbing rough circles on her shoulders, breasts, and stomach. She scrubbed at her arms and legs, and the parts of her back she could reach. Finally, just for good measure she washed her private areas trying to rid herself of any feelings that Nathan might have arisen. Her sadness mixed with feelings of self-hate and even a little bit of embarrassment for being such a baby in front of Nathan. When she finally could catch her breath and her skin was bright pink from the rubbing and hot water, she turned off the spray, and grabbed her towel. After vigorously towel drying her hair and body, she slunk back to her room, her arms full of her clothes and shower gear. Shoving the dirty clothes in the hamper, she dug through one of her drawers until she found her old flannel pjs. Brooke teased her about the old flannels, but she needed some comfort. She quickly flicked off the lights and climbed under the covers.

She knew it was still early, but she lay in bed, praying Brooke wouldn't come back soon, praying she could will away the burning tears that threaten to build up, praying she could fall asleep and not have the bad dreams.

As Nathan trudged slowly out of Haley's dormitory building, he glanced back. Just a few minutes ago, he had jogged here, heart pounding, because he had to see her. When she had smiled at him, he had felt like he was on cloud nine. Now, he could barely lift his feet as he drug himself back towards his building. What the hell had happened? he thought angrily to himself. One minute she was helping to unzip his jacket, than she wrapped his arm so seductively, and then she opened her mouth to kiss him! He wasn't even going to press for tongue, but she offered it. Then, she had leapt back like he hurt her, and her eyes! God, her eyes. He hadn't seen that kind of pain, embarrassment, and even fear in any girl before.

Nathan had wanted to keep kissing her, sure, but he wasn't angry that she pulled away. If anything, he just wanted to hug her, pull her little body close and let her feel how his heart was thumping in his chest, just from being near her. He couldn't believe that she was afraid of him; he hadn't done anything, at least not anything she didn't want, right?

He was never in this situation before. He had never felt like maybe he crossed the line sexually. Lucas had mentioned that Haley had a hard time with an old boyfriend, so maybe that was the problem. But they had just kissed. Just one small, wonderful, amazing kiss that changed everything. He arrived at his building, and didn't want to head to his room just yet. When Brooke had been leaving the room, he figured she was headed for Lucas, so they were probably in there. He knew he would talk to Lucas about what had happened, but he couldn't deal with the questions. He couldn't deal with the idea that Brooke might think he did something and dash off for Haley.

He sat down in the lounge of his building and just waited, staring at his hands. He was a lot of things, cocky, impatient, and even rude on occasion, but he would never, could never hurt a girl. He looked at his hands, holding them up and moving them around. These hands, he told himself, couldn't ever hurt a girl. He realized he was trying to convince himself as much as he was stating a fact. He had to talk to her again, but he couldn't bear it if she were still crying.

He pulled his legs up on the couch, and rolled on his side, still wearing his jacket. The ice Haley had wrapped on him was freezing and starting to melt, but he didn't move. He just lay there trying to think of a way to fix it all, to fix them, to fix her.

Brooke strolled through the lobby to Lucas' building trying to wipe the grin off her face so someone didn't mistake her for an escaped mental patient. Lucas was so sexy, and since they had decided to move their relationship to the next level earlier in the day, they couldn't keep their hands off each other. She finally left when she realized her chin was rubbed raw by his little patch of hair on his chin, and every part of her was aching. A good ache, from very skillful hands and lips and other parts, but aching nonetheless. She couldn't stop thinking about his voice as he whispered to her over and over that he loved her. As he rocked inside her, staring into her eyes with such love. The sex was just the icing on the cake.

She stopped when she saw Nathan laying on the couch in the lounge. "Oh Nathan," she whispered. Maybe he is drunk, she thought to herself. "Wake up, and go to your room, sorry!" The grin fell from her face when he looked up at her with such sadness. His eyes looked a little red, like maybe he had even been crying. "Nathan," she breathed, lowering herself to kneel next to him. They hadn't really talked much, just a few quick and superficial conversations, but clearly he needed to talk to someone.

Her heart pounded; what if something happened to their parents, or something. She tried not to think only of Lucas, but she couldn't help it. She touched his shoulder, and said his name again. "Haley," he whispered back.

Brooke's mind flew into crisis mode. Something happened to Haley! What is he doing here? Why isn't he with her? She had checked her phone before she left Luke's room, and there weren't any calls. She was Haley's in case of emergency contact, since her parents were tooling around in an RV somewhere. "Nathan," she said firmly, trying to control her emotions, "Where is she? Is she sick? Hurt? Tell me!"

"She cried," he said softly. Okay, so she is crying, Brooke thought, her mind running through a million possibilities. Her parents or one of her siblings. Maybe a bad grade. "What!?" she finally shrieked at him. Nathan jumped slightly, and then sat up to face her. He launched into the story, starting with how he couldn't stop thinking about her from the moment he saw her and ending with the look on her face when she asked him to leave.

"Brooke," he pleaded, "I never meant to hurt her, you have to believe me. I have been sitting here beating myself up for over an hour. Wondering what I did, or said, that made her feel like that. But I swear, I didn't do anything. All I said was, 'You're perfect'."

Brooke sighed heavily. Poor Hales, she thought. "Tim," Brooke said slowly, pausing to think about how to continue. "No, Nathan," Nathan replied confused. "No, Tim was her ex. He did a real number on her. God, she will kill me if I tell you the whole story, but let me just give you the Cliff's Notes, okay," she rambled, stopping to look at his face. "They dated for about 6 months in high school. After we graduated, he started pressuring for sex. Finally, she gave in and he became a huge prick. Like insulting and only out for himself, if you get my drift," she continued, moving her eyebrows expressively. "Any way, Haley finally stood up for herself, and he tore her a new one. Telling her she was unattractive and unsexy and that she needed lessons on sex, and that no one would ever want her again. There is probably more, but regardless it messed her up bad. You are the first guy she even considered."

"Great, and then I blew it," Nathan muttered, punching the couch cushion next to him. "No," Brooke said firmly. "You didn't see her face," Nathan said. "But I will," Brooke replied. "I will talk to her. She needs to get over this and realize how amazing she is. And I think you could be the guy to do it. I mean, if you still want to…" Brooke trailed off.

"I do!" he exclaimed, "I can't stop thinking about her. All the time. Not just because she is hot, and she is really hot. But like, I will be doing my homework and wonder what homework she has, or I put on a sweatshirt and I want to know if she gets cold when she studies too. Or the other day, I wondered what her favorite color is," he stopped as he saw Brooke grinning and clutching her chest like she was swooning. "Damn, now I sound like Pucas again," he whined.

"Aww does Luke say those things about me?" she asked quickly. "Brooke, focus, Haley not Lucas," he retorted, standing up. "Fine," she said, "But once I fix Naley, I am coming back for some Brathan time, so you can dish on Brucas." She hopped up and dashed out of the building, leaving Nathan scratching his head at what the hell she was talking about. He walked up to his room, feeling a little more at ease. Brooke was cool, and she obviously cared a lot about Haley. She would definitely help him.

"Brooke," Haley whined, as Brooke tried shoving her arms into the sleeves of a sweatshirt jacket. "How is me taking your shift at the Trainer's office going to help me feel better?" Brooke had been very pushy with her since she exploded into their room last night and said she saw Nathan and heard Haley had been upset. Haley had been both pleased that he cared enough to tell Brooke, and disappointed that she had been so transparent and that Nathan had witnessed her freak out. No wonder Tim said I was frigid, she kept thinking to herself. Then, after Brooke had spent hours last night and this morning using a Brooke Davis method of tough love, ice cream, and general snarkiness, she had the nerve to ask, no, demand that Haley cover her evening shift at the Athletic Trainer's office so she and Lucas could spend some alone time together.

"Brooke, seriously, I can't deal right now," she pouted, knowing that even though she didn't feel like it, she should leave the room. "Haaaales, please. Pretty please! Just a little bit! C'mon. It's a short shift, I agreed to cover the last hour of the shift for one of the other student workers, because she has some study thing, but then Luke asked me to hang out, and…..please!" she babbled, as she scooped up some of Haley's books and put them in her school bag.

"Fine!" Haley shouted a little brusquer than she meant. She winced at the mean sound of her voice. She shouldn't be bitter. Just because she ruined every chance and love or happiness or hot make out sessions, doesn't mean she needs to take it out on Brooke. "Sorry, Brooke, I'm just, blech," Haley said, with a small smile. "I will be back as soon as I am done covering this shift, so either go fast with Lucas or go to his room," she warned. "Oh Haley," Brooke squealed, "Thank you! I will be going to his room because there is nothing that boy does fast. Everything is the right speed, especially with his…" "La la la la, not listening," Haley sung, clasping her hands over her ears. She grabbed her bag, stuck her tongue out at Brooke, and stormed out, pulling the door shut.

Brooke threw herself on the bed, wriggling with happiness. She stood up, grabbed her cell phone and dialed Lucas, "Uh, Luke, hi. So Haley's on her way to the Trainer's office. Nathan will definitely stop for ice right, or do I need to go over there and drop a free weight on his toe? Okay good, I will be over in a few." She looked at herself in the mirror, running her fingers through her hair. She said aloud to herself, "Damn, I am good. First, I figure out Lucas' secret. Then, I get Nathan to confide his gushy feelings to me. And then, I mastermind the perfect plan for Haley and Nathan to be thrown together. I should be the one negotiating peace in the Middle East." She blew herself a kiss in the mirror, grabbed her jacket, and dashed over to Lucas' room.

Haley looked up at the clock. Perfect, she said to herself. She had just finished outlining her Music Theory chapter, and there was only 3 minutes left in her shift, scratch that, _Brooke's_ _shift_, so she started gathering her stuff up. Only one student had come in at the beginning of the hour to grab a bag of ice, and then another girl wandered in about half way through asking for a band-aid, so she had gotten a lot of studying done. She got up and started walking back to turn off the lights, as she heard the door open. "I'm in here. Just turning out the lights. Grab what you need, though!" she called out to the visitor. She walked out of the darkened back half of the office, and into the room with the tubs and ice machine, and she gasped. Nathan.

Shit, shit, shit, she chanted. They stared for a long minute. Then, Nathan let a small and tentative smile creep over his face. She melted a bit. "God, you get hurt a lot," she said, trying to mask the anxiety in her voice. She turned towards the ice machine and grabbed a bag of ice; she spun around, and he was there, right there. She gasped again.

Great job, ass, he thought, as he stepped back slightly. You freaked her out before and now you are creeping up on her when her back is turned. "Sorry," he croaked, and reached out. Without thinking, she gave him the hand without the ice. Without looking at what she was offering, assuming it was the bag of ice, which she had hastily grabbed, he closed his hand around her small warm hand. She could feel the tingle when their skin touched, and her mouth fell open slightly. She was ready to pull back when his face broke into a grin. She could tell it was genuine, not cocky or bold, just happy. "Uh here," she said, without pulling her hand back, and offered the ice. He took the bag, closing the distance between them. Then he reached behind her, tossed it back into the ice machine, and grasped her hand again.

They stood there for along minute, just holding each other's hands a little awkwardly. Both were running through what this moment meant to them, how it was changing them with each passing second. Haley couldn't stop looking at his face. He was a beautiful man, but right now he looked so genuine and compassionate. He stared intently into her eyes, looking for the first sign of nervousness or worse yet, fear, but he didn't see it, so he kept holding on. Finally, she shuffled forward, closer to him, and bit her lip. He shuffled forward slightly, furrowing his brow.

By now they were so close that they could hear the other's breathing over the noise of the machines in the room. She swore she could feel his breath exhaling on her forehead, and Nathan could smell her hair wafting up to him due to the steaminess of the hot tub by which they were standing. She felt him squeeze her hand slightly, and in that moment, she just wanted it to stop. The anxiety, and hate, and nervousness, and fear. He was here, holding her hands, breathing heavily, just standing in silence with her. He wasn't going to try to break her, and she wanted to go back to being strong and proud and brave. With the small squeezes and the tentative circles he was tracing on the backs of her hands with his thumbs, he was restoring a little bit of her self-esteem.

She dropped his hands, and just as he was about to step back and give her space, she threw her arms around his neck, standing on her tip toes, and pulled herself towards him in a tight hug. "I'm sorry," she murmured into his neck. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight to him, and began rubbing gentle circles on the small of her back. "Don't be sorry for anything you are feeling, Haley," he whispered.

They held each other for a long moment. It felt so good to him to have her in his arms, but it wasn't like a sexual good. It just felt nice. He felt safe and warm and cared for, and more than that, he liked giving that back to someone else. This was what he had been missing with those other girls.

He pressed a small kiss on the top of her head, breathing in her hair, and then leaned into her and whispered, "I could stay like this all night, but do you want to go and get an ice cream or something and talk?" Her heart stuttered as she felt his warm breath on her ear. He was being so kind, that she had to keep reminding herself that _**this**_ was normal, not what she had experienced in the past.

"Yeah," she whispered, "We could go to my room; I have some Ben and Jerry's." "Sounds perfect," he whispered with a smile. She turned out the light to the room, and walked to her desk. Before she could grab her bag, he had scooped it up, and picked up her jacket. He held it out to her, helping her to slide into it. She blushed but stepped into the jacket, grateful that he was taking care of her, and that he had given her a second chance. He opened the door to the office, and held it open, gesturing for her to go first, "Ladies first," he said, with a slight bow. The blush intensified, and she tucked the hair behind her ear, flicking the light switch as she walked out.

Nathan waited for her as she locked up, and then looked down at her warmly, holding his hand out slightly. He didn't want to overwhelm her, but he wanted to feel her warm hand in his again. She smiled, and grabbed his hand tightly, rubbing his knuckles with her thumb. They both exhaled deeply and headed out into the night.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Here is the next chapter! This one is long, but I had a lot to say, and I didn't want to break it up sooner. Again, thank you for the reviews! I really appreciate getting each of them, and your kind words are certainly taken to heart!

Please keep up the reviews!

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They walked back to Haley's dorm nearly in silence. Each had muttered a few sentences about generic things like the weather and the stress of school. Nathan called her attention to a particularly bright shooting star, and she briefly mentioned a memorable meteor shower she had witnessed when she was 11. While their words weren't saying much, the tight grip they maintained on each other's hands was reassuring that both wanted to be here and that they were both trying.

Haley begged her body not to betray her by shivering each time Nathan started rubbing the circles on her hand with his slightly calloused thumb. His hand was so big and warm, and even though it was only her hand, she had never felt as safe in her life, as she did walking with him across campus. She was momentarily surprised that he didn't drop her hand, when they encountered a couple guys from the basketball team walking the opposite direction. He just gave them a nod and kept going, tightening his grip on her hand. She managed to quell the voice in her head that said he was too embarrassed to be with her, since she wasn't his typical date, by convincing herself that it was cold and both she and Nathan and his teammates were in a hurry to reach their destinations.

She is letting me hold her hand, he kept repeating triumphantly. He wanted to steal a glance at her, but he was afraid she would get nervous again, so he kept his eyes forward. When he saw the guys from the team approaching, he silently willed them not to try to start a conversation because he didn't want her to let go of him. He wanted to make it to the safety of her room so he could tell her what he was feeling and beg her to give him another chance.

When they finally reached the door to her and Brooke's room, Haley pulled out her keys. She tried to stick the key in the lock, but her hand was trembling slightly. She hoped that Nathan would attribute it to the frigid weather and not to fear or nervousness. She felt his hand close over hers gently and guide the key to the slot. Together they turned the key. She glanced up at him and gave him a smile, "Thanks," she said. He grinned. So far so good, he thought to himself as he walked in her room.

"So, ice cream? Or would you rather have hot chocolate? I have some mix. Or there might even be a beer in there that's Brooke's?" she rambled. She kept talking as she moved around the room, turning on the lights and removing her jacket, even though she was desperate to stay near him. "Uh, whatever you are having," he said. She looked back at him, and saw him just standing in the middle of the room awkwardly. She took pity on him, figuring he wasn't sure whether she was going to pull another freak out. "Here, take off your jacket, feel free to kick off your sneakers and make yourself comfortable. Either bed, or stretch out on the floor, those big pillows," gesturing to a pile of oversized lounging pillows, "are really comfortable." She grabbed one and unceremoniously plopped on the floor, pulling off her sneakers and tossing them in the direction of her closet. He followed suit, removing his sneakers and jacket and sitting on the floor opposite her, so they were looking directly at each other. She moved over a bit so their legs were touching ever so slightly. He couldn't help but grin when she moved near him, and tried to focus on her face, instead of looking down at her short legs, which barely reached past his knees.

"So," she said. "So," he echoed. "Listen," they both blurted at the same time. After going back and forth for a moment over who should go first, Nathan said, "No really, you go, ladies first." She took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. "Listen; just let me say this and then you can speak. I am sorry. I didn't mean to freak out like a baby. I was nervous and second guessing myself, and I just panicked. I think you are a nice guy, and I just couldn't believe you wanted to kiss someone like me, so I let my self-consciousness get the best of me, and I'm just sorry."

She opened her eyes. He was just sitting there, waiting patiently. "Okay, you can talk now," she said, bracing herself. Maybe he will say, let's just be friends. Maybe he will say, no big deal, let's pretend it never happened, she wondered. "Not someone like you," he said. Huh? she thought. "Huh?" she said. "I don't want to kiss someone like you," he said more firmly. There it is, she thought dejectedly. "Okay, I mean, no big deal. It was just a mistake that happened in the moment. Forget about it!" she tried to look blasé, even relieved, but she could only muster a shaky smile.

"No," he said as a small grin spread over his face. "I meant, I don't want to kiss someone like you, I want to kiss you. I think about all the time. Since the first night we met, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. When I am working out, when I should be studying, when I am eating, and certainly while I am sleeping. You. I think about your voice and your laugh, and the way your hair smells. I want to hear all your stories, like the one you mentioned about the meteor shower. I want to know what your favorite food is. I want to know what kind of soap you use and what your favorite color is. And yes, I want to kiss you. That kiss the other night wasn't nearly enough. So, no, I don't want to kiss someone, I want you," he finished, his voice trailing slightly at the end.

Her mind couldn't work fast enough to keep up. She literally thought her heart was going to pump right out of her chest, and she looked down quickly to see if you could see the movement through her long sleeved tee shirt. She wanted to tell him that she felt the same way. She wanted to say that she had never felt like this about someone, especially someone she hardly knows. She wanted to say that he was amazing. But she couldn't speak, so she just leaned forward and pressed a small chaste kiss against the corner of his mouth. She pulled back, leaning on her palms and knees, and looked at his face. "Macaroni and cheese, Dove, blue," she whispered.

Now he was confused. She smiled, "My favorite food is macaroni and cheese; I use Dove soap, the bars not the body wash, and my favorite color is blue, like your eyes. I feel the same way you do, and I am so glad you are giving me another chance. And if you don't kiss me soon, and I am going to explode." She was a little surprised she had added in the last part, but when she felt his lips crash into hers, she was so glad she did.

This kiss wasn't nearly as tentative as the one the other night. They both knew that the other wanted it, so no holds were barred. Their lips met, dueling for control. Haley was surprised at how assertive she was being, as she sucked his top lip into her mouth, nipping at the sensitive skin, before releasing it to claim the lower lip in the same fashion. His tongue massaged hers, exploring every corner of her mouth slowly as if to memorize it. He slid his hand up her arm to her cheek and cupped it. She was so soft. Her skin felt like silk and he wanted to trail his fingers everywhere, but he settled for stroking gentle patterns down her cheek and neck, relishing the small shivers she had as he grazed her skin.

When they needed to breathe, they broke apart, but Nathan couldn't stop, as he gasped for breath, he pressed kisses against her cheek and down her neck, suckling gently at the small patch of skin just under her ear. She couldn't help the small moan that escaped her lips as she felt him nipping the sensitive patch and then soothing it with his tongue. The noise that escaped her lips just urged him on and he intensified the sucking.

Her head was spinning and her arms and legs were shaking. She leaned into him more, breathing into his ear, as he continued his ministrations on her neck. When he gently nipped her earlobe, her arm buckled slightly, forcing her into him. He jolted his mouth away from her neck, and looked up at her. Her eyes were shiny and her lips were swollen and perfect. Her mouth was open, and she was panting a bit. She must be uncomfortable kneeling like that, but he didn't want to pull her into him, and seem like he was pushing her at all. She bit her lip, and looked a bit embarrassed. He touched her cheek, trying to reassure her. "Why did you stop?" she asked, surprised at how needy she sounded. He smirked, "I thought you might be uncomfortable, sit back, and I can lean over," he gestured.

She moved backwards, but not to sit against Brooke's bed. She lowered herself against the pile of pillows on the floor, and crooked her finger, encouraging him to come to her. She is so sexy, he thought to himself. In the 3 seconds, it took him to move to her, he reminded himself to stay calm and not get grabby, but she looked so perfect lying there, with her long hair spread out and her perfect, tiny body, that he knew it would be hard.

He lowered himself down, alongside her, reaching out again to cup her cheek with one hand, while the other gently pulled them closer together. He left a little space between them so she would feel comfortable, but also so, he could take in her face. Just laying there with her, breathing in the same rhythm, touching her silken skin with his hand on her hip was the most erotic moment he had ever had. He had never felt so connected to another person. He wanted to say everything to her, but he loved the comfortable silence. He wondered if she was feeling the same way. He grabbed her hand from his shoulder, and moved it over to his heart, leaning up slightly so she could feel the pounding in his chest. "Just laying here with you does that to me, Hales," he whispered, rubbing her cheekbone with his thumb.

She leaned into him, claiming his lips again. She couldn't think in words, just sensations. It was more than kissing, this was healing. They lay there enjoying each other's lips, breaking only when breathing was necessary. She pushed herself into him more and more until there was no space between them, and she wound her arms around him. She ran one hand through his thick hair, enjoying the cool tickle as the hair slid through her fingers. She scratched her nails against his scalp. He moaned. They both stopped for a second, and then very slowly but deliberately, she did it again, hoping to elicit the same reaction. She wanted him to feel good, as good as, he was making her feel. He had moved his hand from her cheek to cup her head slightly, feeling the smoothness of her hair. The other hand remained on her hip, alternating light squeezes and small circles.

After what felt like an eternity of perfect kisses and small moans, she pulled her hips closer to him wanting to feel his whole body. She was surprised when she felt a slight hardness against her leg.

Damn, he thought to himself, as he felt her thigh brush his bulge. She pulled back slightly, continuing to run her hands through his hair, and pressed a small kiss on his cheek. "Do you want to take a break?" she breathed. He didn't want to, but he knew it was necessary, especially if he ever wanted to walk out of this room again without sporting a major bulge in his pants.

They pulled further apart, and lay there again, just looking at each other. After a moment, she sat up abruptly. A giggle bubbled out of her throat, "If we stay there like this, I won't be able to help myself." Every time she said something like that, it felt like she was stroking his heart. He loved knowing that she was as turned on and interested as he was. His body exhibited very clearly to her his want, but hearing her words, he knew she was struggling too.

They sat for the rest of the evening, eating ice cream, sharing small and some not-so-small kisses, and talking. As good as the kissing was, Nathan thought the talking was better. They were talking about everything. Haley shared stories about her siblings, all five of them, and how her parents had left on an extended RV trip once Haley had graduated from high school. Nathan told her about his great relationship with Lucas, and how sometimes he resented that Lucas was older, even if it was only by 10 minutes and 27 seconds. They discussed the pressures they felt in school, and Nathan from basketball, and they told each other funny stories about growing up.

Haley didn't talk much about Tim, only to mention briefly that they had dated for six months during high school, and then broke up shortly before they headed off to college. He was a talented artist and went to school in Savannah. Nathan listened, trying not to visibly wince, when she mentioned prom and other school activities, knowing that Tim, or Dim as he began thinking of him, had escorted Haley. He didn't want to press Haley; this night had been so perfect and he dared not create any tension.

He could tell that she was still hurting from whatever had happened, and he could barely contain the feelings of rage that bubbled inside him. What kind of a total jerk hurts a girl like Haley? What kinds of terrible things must he have said to her, and God help him if he actually touched her roughly, he thought to himself. Just look at her, so sweet and innocent.

"Nathan," she said, looking at him pointedly, "Where's your head at? I asked you a question." He smiled weakly, "Sorry, Hales," he muttered, grabbing her hand. She repeated, "When is your next game?" "Oh, on Saturday evening," he replied. "Great, I'll be there!" she exclaimed, squeezing his hand. He smiled, feeling his heart swell at the thought of her there, cheering him on, "Do you maybe want to go out afterwards, and celebrate?" he asked. "Aren't you cocky?" she said in a teasing tone, "Convinced you are going to win?"

"Nah," he replied, "I mean, we probably will win, but I meant, celebrating us." She blushed again, and leaned down to kiss him gently. When she felt him deepen the kiss, she groaned slightly, before spearing her fingers in his hair. He carefully maneuvered her body, so that he was lying alongside her, with his hand rubbing her back gently, before moving up to tangle in her long curls.

The door exploded open, and Brooke strolled in. "Oooh! My plan worked," she exclaimed, clapping her hands in delight. Nathan and Haley fell apart quickly, wiping their mouths. "Brooke," Nathan groaned softly. "What plan?" Haley asked. "Oh come on, I didn't really have to cover the last hour of a shift at the Trainer's office. I called the girl who was working and asked her if I could have her last hour, and then I made you go. Lucas told me Nathan was working out, and I knew that he would come in, so, duh, you're there; he's there. Naley Phase 1 in effect," she explained, as she hung up her jacket in the closet.

Nathan had started putting his shoes on when Brooke started her story, and then chuckled when he heard how matter of a fact her plan was. She was a good friend. He leaned over and pressed a small kiss on Haley, before cupping her bright red cheeks and looking deep into her eyes. "Nathan," she whispered, "I didn't know." He grinned, and kissed her again, flicking his tongue quickly against her mouth. "It doesn't matter now, all that matters is this," he whispered back. He jumped up, and looked at Brooke. "Well, I will give you back your roommate…for now," he said, pulling on his jacket. He headed towards the door, and then, as an afterthought, he doubled back, and pressed a small kiss on Brooke's cheek. "Thanks," he said. "Talk to you later, beautiful," he said with a wink, as he let himself out of the room.

Haley fell back on the floor, with her hand to her chest. This was perfect. Brooke squealed, and bounced on to her bed, hanging her head off the edge and looking down at Haley's flushed face. "Haley, this is great!" Brooke exclaimed. "I know, he is so sweet and kind, and such a good kisser," Haley gushed back. "And we are practically sisters-in law!" Brooke replied. Haley rolled her eyes good-naturedly and launched into the whole story, starting with the well-orchestrated meeting in the Trainer's office and ending with the date request. "So you have a date on Saturday!" Brooke said. "After the game?"

"You know, I didn't get a chance to accept, because you exploded in here when I was showing him how touched I was with his sweet words," Haley retorted, acting irritated. She grabbed her cell phone, scrolling through the numbers for Nathan's which he had programmed into her phone earlier in the evening.

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket as he was sitting at his computer checking his email. Haley. He quickly answered it, "Miss me already?" She purred back, "Of course." "I can be back to your room in 5 minutes, Hales," he offered seriously. "I would love that, but I need my beauty sleep." "If you get any more beautiful, I am going to need to hire a full time body guard to beat the guys away," he scoffed. She grinned as she listened to his sexy voice, trying to imagine what he was doing. "So, Nathan, other than wanting to hear your sexy voice, I did have a reason for calling. I wanted to say yes to your question." He paused. What question?

Hearing his pause, she continued on, "Oh now I am feeling hurt. You don't even remember asking me?" "Of course I remember, Haley, we have a date for Saturday, after the game. I was just trying to think if I wanted to tell you what I have planned, or keep it a secret," he rushed out, relieved that he remembered. "I don't really like secrets," she said slowly, not wanting to spoil it for him. "Okay, I will tell you, after the game on Saturday, so you have enough time to get ready, not that you would need to since you are so beautiful any way," he whispered.

After a couple more exchanges and whispered good nights, Haley got off the phone. She got ready for bed, barely hearing Brooke's questions and comments. She couldn't stop thinking about how happy she was. Just the other day she had been feeling so bad about herself, and the thought of Nathan made her feel miserable. She had come to realize that she was transferring her bad feeling associated with Tim to Nathan, but being with him this evening. Seeing his face light up as she spoke and feeling his heart pound and hands shake made her realize that it was real. This night she could barely fall asleep, and the only way she could finally drift off was by telling herself that the sooner she went to sleep the sooner tomorrow would come so she could see Nathan again.

"Oh God," Haley breathed, "I am so nervous I could puke." "Ew, don't," Brooke said, holding up her hands as if to keep Haley away. Haley rolled her eyes, and elbowed Brooke and they both giggled, before returning their attention to the game. The boys had gotten them seats practically on the floor, and both girls were nervously watching the action. The score was close, but Duke was slightly ahead. "He looks like a super hero out there," Haley whispered, unable to tear her eyes away from him. In the past week, she had stopped in and watched the end of a couple practices, and she and Brooke just so happened to wander into the weight room as the boys finished one evening, so she had seen him working out, but watching him play was so graceful. The lines and the movements almost reminded her of when she went with her mom and sisters to watch the ballet several years ago. As graceful as he was, there was certainly something overwhelmingly sexy about his bulging muscles and the fine sheen of sweat all over his body. When the coach had called them over for a time out to review a play, she caught his eye and he winked at her before returning to the court. The coach must have noticed because he glanced back at them, and shook his head good-naturedly before returning his eyes to the team.

With only 1 minute left, one of the opposing players fouled Nathan, elbowing him in the face, and causing his nose to begin bleeding. Haley felt herself rising to her feet instinctively, but then sat back down as the team's doctor walked towards Nathan. The coach called a sub in for Nathan, who seemed angrier that his night was over than at the fact that his nose was bleeding and the skin around his eye was rapidly swelling. The rest of the Duke team seemed to want to avenge the injury against one of their star players and the ball swished through the hoop repeatedly as the time counted down. As the final buzzer sounded, the Duke fans leapt to their feet, joyously applauding another victory. Haley and Brooke carefully made their way down the few steps to the court and waited for the boys to come over.

Nathan walked up slowly, holding a bag of ice to his face. As he got closer to Haley, he could feel his heart pounding harder and harder. She is just so beautiful. When he got to her, he couldn't help the stupid grin that spread across his face, until he realized she wasn't smiling back. "Hey Hales," he said tentatively, reaching his hand out to her. She immediately took his hand and pulled him down into a seat. She stepped close and slowly pulled away the bag of ice. She drew her breath in sharply when she could see the swollen skin around his eye that was already starting to darken. "It's okay, Hales," he said, "Looks worse than it feels." "What an asshole that guy was," she murmured, as she ran her fingers along his eye gently, her eyes narrowing with concentration.

As her tiny fingers stroked the side of his face, he shivered involuntarily. She pulled back suddenly, and looked concerned. "It's fine, really. It feels nice when you touch me," he admitted, smirking at her, when he saw the blush begin to spread across her cheeks. "Well, do you need to go to see the doctor? Or to the hospital?" she asked, rubbing his back gently. "Nah, really, I am fine. God knows, Luke has probably hit me this hard before when we were just messing around," he replied, squeezing her hand, "I would actually like to get on with our date, though." "Oh Nathan, are you sure? If your face hurts, we can definitely skip it," she rushed out. "No! I mean, unless you want to skip it," he said, frantically.

"Oh for the love of God," Lucas interrupted, "Nathan is fine. He has a hard head, and the bruising actually might improve his ugly face. Neither of you wants to skip it. According to Brooke, Haley has been excited all week, and God knows, Nathan has been practically skipping all week with excitement. You are going out. We are staying over at our room tonight, after we hit some parties, so Nate, you are probably sleeping in the lounge. See you both around!" Then he turned to Brooke and said, "I have my clothes with me, I am going to grab a quick shower, and I will meet you out here!" He stalked off, shooting a grin at the group. Both Haley and Nathan stood in awe, as Brooke grinned at his retreating figure. "Hales," she whispered. "We don't have to stay in Luke's room, if you don't want to be stuck with Bruise Face over here."

Haley could feel her heart pounding. A night all alone with Nathan. She looked at his face, and could only read nervousness. She loved that he was a little nervous about the idea of them spending the night together. She knew that he wouldn't push her. "No, it's fine," Haley said firmly. Brooke grinned, "Great, hey Bruiser, you can sleep in my bed, if you want! See you guys for breakfast tomorrow!"

Haley looked up at him shyly, "So, looks like it's just you and me." "Listen, Haley, I promise I had no idea. I can totally sleep in the lounge, or find a guy on the team and crash in his room, or actually, to hell with Lucas…" he trailed off when he noticed Haley giggling. "What?" he asked. "You are nervous to be with me," she teased. "Nah, well, actually, yeah. I mean, I don't want you to feel like I am pushing or anything. I would never expect, I mean, you shouldn't feel like I want, or rather, God, Hales, whatever you want. I will sleep where ever you want," he blurted.

She ran her fingers up his arm to his neck, and gently stroked the hair along the nape of his neck. "So, if I wanted you to stay with me, in my room, you would want to?" she asked quietly. "Of course!" he exclaimed, unable to believe what was really happening. "Good to know my options," she giggled, standing on her tiptoes to press and tiny kiss on his cheek. "So, what is the plan for this date?"

He groaned slightly. He wanted a real kiss, but after all this talk and innuendo about sleeping arrangements he dared not press it. "I thought we could go to this little club around the corner. Tonight is Amateur night, and according to one of the guys on the team it is a cross between a joke due to some of the lousy acts, and a real concert due to some of the great talents that come out." "Sounds perfect," she replied. "Let me run back to my room, and get changed. Come by and pick me up when you are ready!" She squeezed his hand gently and dashed off.

He was left standing there, confused as to what had just happened. He jogged to the locker room to get his stuff, so he wouldn't keep her waiting.

A/N: I know this was a long one! But thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think. As a sneak preview, coming up we have the first date, Haley's confessions to Nathan about what happened with Tim, summer vacation, and some huge drama. And of course, some chapters dedicated solely to living up to the Mature rating on this story. I have written out some notes, and I promise you, it will be good!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Wow! Thanks so much for the reviews! Especially, maracasgirl, who left such a wonderfully kind review of the story. I am glad you are enjoying this! As always please review and let me know what you think. This one is long too, but I hope you enjoy. Lots of good stuff in the upcoming chapters.

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"Nathan, really, it's fine, totally not a big deal," Haley said, squeezing his hand in hers. Nathan tried not to be angry, but he couldn't help himself. "Damn, Jeff," he exclaimed. "Nathan, really, the night is perfect, just relax," she cried out, pulling his arm so he faced her. Looking into her eyes, he tried again to let go of the frustration, and as she smiled and leaned up to cup his cheek in her hand, he exhaled heavily and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in tight to him.

_The night had started off perfectly. He got ready and dashed over to her room to pick her up. When she opened the door, his mouth dropped open. She was wearing a simple black dress that came to slightly above her knees. The neckline was a heart, subtly drawing attention to her perfect breasts. She had curled her hair and left it loose, hanging down her back. As always, she had applied light makeup, just enough to highlight her natural beauty. "Come on in," she said_, "_I need just a minute." She walked over to her closet and bent down to grab a pair of shoes. His eyes were drawn to her ass. He didn't want to ogle her, but she was too perfect. He tried to draw his eyes away before she turned around, but she caught him staring. She felt her cheeks get warm as the blush spread across her cheeks. He looked up at her face sheepishly. He was caught between being embarrassed at getting caught, nervous at the idea that she might be upset with him, and utterly turned on as he watched the blush spread down her neck to the tops of her breasts. _

"_Sorry," he breathed. She grinned back, and turned to face the mirror. She grabbed a lip-gloss and carefully traced her lips with it. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her if he wanted. She was so beautiful. She tried to keep her hand steady as she applied the gloss. She knew he had been staring at her. Usually, if she caught a guy looking, she convinced herself that she might look bad, or that he was only out for sex. But the way Nathan looked at her wasn't just lust. It was something more. Plus, she loved when he got a little embarrassed. It sort of leveled the playing field. She glanced in the mirror, and caught him looking again. She took him in carefully. He was wearing a blue button up shirt and a pair of dark jeans. He always looked sexy, but tonight, with the blue shirt bringing out the blue of his eyes, she thought he had never looked better. _

"_So, I am ready," she said, as she turned, holding her coat in her arms. He quickly took it, and helped her into it. Standing behind her, he leaned down to whisper in her ear, "You look amazing." She shivered slightly and turned her face towards him. Their faces were so close together that their noses brushed. "Thanks," she breathed back, and then leaned in to press a tiny kiss on his cheek. He felt his heart rate increase even more. He wanted nothing more than to grab her in a passionate kiss, but he wanted this night to be perfect._

_They had walked out to his car, and headed over to the club. She was so taken with how much of a gentleman he was being. Their interactions had been limited a bit in the short time they had known each other. He had always held a door for her or pulled out a chair in the cafeteria. But tonight, everything was just perfect. He had opened the car door and made sure that her coat was tucked in carefully, before leaning over to kiss her forehead, and close the door tight. He was quick to run around the car and open the door for her when they got to the club, and then he held her hand tight, stepping ahead of her on uneven pavement and guiding her around a puddle of melting snow. It wasn't just that he was taking care of her but the way that he did it, without even making it seem obvious, not breaking the conversation for a moment, made her heart swell. _

_They walked up to the club and when they went in, they both stopped for a second. "Whoa," she said. "Damn," he said. The "club" was dark, and it wasn't purposefully done. There were flickering fluorescent light bulbs that were moments away from burning out completely. A couple small tables were in the center of the room, and on the stage, a drunken man was crooning an unintelligible song with a cigarette hanging from one hand and a beer bottle in the other. A bored looking waitress rushed by and said, "Sit wherever."_

_Haley squeezed his hand and looked up at him. "Hales," he whispered. "It's fine, Nathan. I'm just glad we are together," she said with a small smile, "Why don't you get us a table, and I am going to go to the bathroom." "Okay," he murmured releasing her hand. He walked over to the table that was the furthest away from the rest of the patrons. He pulled the two chairs close, and then sat in one. The table was wobbly and sticky, and the chairs were terribly uncomfortable, especially for someone as tall as he was. Less than a minute later, Haley walked back over to the table. He jumped to his feet and helped her take her coat off, and pushed in the chair for her. "That was quick," he said trying to smile. "Oh, I just changed my mind. I can hold it until we get home," she smiled taking his hand. "The bathroom is that bad, huh?" he said. "Pretty foul," she admitted, "But I am fine. I am just happy to be here, with you."_

_The bored waitress announced the next singer and a woman wearing less clothing than he had ever seen in public staggered to the stage and began shrieking. They looked at each other and giggled. Haley leaned over and rested her head under his chin, snuggling into him. They sat and watched the woman shriek and gyrate on the stage for several minutes. He leaned his mouth down towards her ear, "Haley, I am so sorry. I really trusted Jeff. I had no idea. I promise." She leaned up and looked into his eyes. "Okay, Nathan, this place isn't perfect, but being here with you is. Don't worry," she said encouragingly. He buried his face in her hair and breathed her in. How could he have been so stupid? He should have driven past and seen what it was like before he took her here. What a chump. _

_She leaned into him further, enjoying the feeling of his hard body wrapped around her. She didn't really care where she was, as long as they were together. She knew he felt bad, but she really didn't care about the place. The waitress wandered over and stopped at their table, "Whatcha want?" she asked. They leaned forward, and Nathan looked up at her, "Um, do you have a dinner menu?" "Hon, we have wings and we have fries," she exhaled looking bored. Nathan looked over at Haley. She was so beautiful. He shouldn't have made her even walk into this terrible place. And now for their first date meal, he was going to get her wings? He stood up, and looked at the waitress, "Oh, we wanted dinner; we're leaving." Haley looked up surprised, as she felt him pulling her to her feet, and sliding her arms into her coat. He pulled her towards the door, and they walked out together. _

They stepped apart. "So, Hales," he breathed softly, "What are you in the mood to eat? Obviously my planning skills suck, so…" "Nathan, we could have stayed. I would go anywhere with you. But this doesn't need to be fancy. I just want to be with you," she said, with a slight shiver as the wind blew by. He rubbed his hands on her arms, and then realized her coat was not buttoned. He carefully matched up the buttons and snuggly buttoned her up. "Okay, I believe you; let's go get something to eat. I am starved," he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

They pulled up at a burger restaurant. "Perfect!" she exclaimed, "I love burgers!" "Listen Hales, the next time, I am going to do this right, research the right place, make a reservation, take you to a place that serves real food…" he rambled. " Nathan Scott, for the final time, being with you is the best part. I love burgers. I just feel a little silly that I am over dressed. I will stick out," she said, looking down at the bottom of her dress. "You would stick out no matter where you are. You are the most beautiful girl in every room," he said, leaning close. He had to kiss her. He wanted to wait until later, but he couldn't take it anymore. He brushed his lips against hers gently, before pressing in further to deepen the kiss. His heart leapt in his chest as he felt her eagerly returning the kiss. When her tongue traced his lips asking for entry, he rapidly opened his mouth to her. After a few long moments of careful exploration of each other's mouths, they broke apart. The only sound that could be heard was heavy panting and a few small kisses that Nathan pressed on her cheeks, not able to separate himself from her. She rested her forehead against his, even though the way she was twisted around in the seat wasn't particularly comfortable. "Let's get the burgers to go."

Haley couldn't stop laughing as Nathan tickled her. "Nathan, Nathan, Nathan," she shrieked, wriggling around under him. His fingers were tickling her sides gently, and she was gasping for breath. "Say it, Hales," he warned, teasing her sides again with his fingers. Since they had gotten back to her room, they had eaten dinner and spent the night talking. Haley had started laughing, and when he had asked her what was going on, she had said, "Just remembering the look on your face when the second lady took the stage at that club. It was priceless. You looked almost scared." He had rebuked, "Scared? Nah, I am never scared." She scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah, okay, never?" That's when he started tickling her. He said between her shrieks, "Tell me! Tell me, I am fearless and brave and not afraid of anything!"

When she realized he wasn't giving in and she was starting to get a slight cramp in her side from all the shrieking and gasping, she decided to appease him. "Fine! Fine!" she yelled. He stopped moving his fingers, but didn't let her up. "You are fearless and brave and not afraid of anything!" After she admitted, what he wanted her to admit, he leaned in and kissed her softly. "Actually, I lied. I am afraid sometimes." "I knew it!" she said incredulously. He leaned his face down into her neck and inhaled deeply. She smelled so good. Some girls drowned themselves in perfume or scented lotions, but Haley smelled clean and sweet and like her. He knew she wore a fragrance, one he had never smelled before on another girl, but it was so soft and subtle that he had to get really close to smell it. He liked it that way. "What?" she whispered. He pulled his face from her neck to look at her, "What what?" he asked. "What are you afraid of?" she breathed back, running her fingers through his hair.

He exhaled heavily. He didn't want to freak her out, but he couldn't lie. "I'm afraid of you looking at me with fear in your eyes again. I'm afraid that you will realize you are really too good for me. And most of all, I am afraid that some other jerk hurt you too badly for you to ever really trust me fully." He wanted to look away from the intensity of her stare, but he couldn't do it. A small tear escaped her eye and rolled back into her hair. He brushed his fingers over her cheek and wiped away the moisture. "Hales, you don't have to say anything or do anything, but I just wanted to be honest."

She took a deep breath and leaned her face into his touch. "No, I want to tell you. I trust you, Nathan. I do. I have been hurt, and you deserve to know the truth because I don't want you to think for one instant that my hesitation or standoffishness has anything to do with you. It's me." He leaned back a little, so they could sit up.

"So," she started. "Tim and I started dating around Christmas of senior year. We were not really friends, but we were kind of in the same circle. He was a tortured artist, and I was a book nerd. We kind of clicked in AP English and rest was history. I was not really that experienced with guys, but he was okay with waiting. At first, it was nice. We hung out; we went to parties; we had dates; we made out," she said blushing.

Nathan forced himself to stay calm. It's in the past, he told himself. He smiled weakly, and she continued. "Then, around the prom, he started really pushing for sex. I mean, we hadn't even really done anything other than kiss, but he was really starting to push. I had always told myself I wanted to wait until I was in love, but that patient kind guy that I had started dating turned into a pushy jerk. It was happening gradually, I didn't realize it until we broke up. Finally, one day, we were kissing, he brought it up, and I told him I wanted to wait until we were in love and he said it. I was just so happy to hear it, that I agreed to have sex with him. I thought I loved him, and when I heard him say the words, I was overwhelmed. No one had ever said that. I mean, guys weren't really lining up for me."

She took a deep breath and looked at him. She smiled at the concerned but slightly pained look on his face. "Sorry," she breathed. "No, it's okay, I want to hear it," he said. "So we had sex. It was terrible. He was so rushed and awkward. He didn't really care about what I was feeling or me. It was over in a few minutes, and he fell asleep. We kept trying over the next couple weeks. He only wanted to have sex when we were together. I thought it would get better. But it didn't. Then, when I told him that I wanted to take a break, he snapped. He freaked out and screamed at me. He told me it was my fault that I couldn't…..." she faltered.

"What?" he asked confused. "You know," she said, looking away. Her face was bright red and her palms were sweating. She hadn't meant to tell him that part but she got so caught up that she couldn't stop. Suddenly he realized what she meant. He felt himself getting hot. He was so angry at that jerk for making her think that. He thought to himself, what kind of a loser does that? What kind of a loser doesn't take care of her needs? He tried to suppress that little part of himself that was slightly excited at the idea of being able to show her that she could, you know.

He started to speak, "Hales, it's okay, just go ahead." She started to speak again, her voice shaky, "He said I was frigid and unsexy, and that no other guy would ever want me. That he was doing me a favor. He told me I should get lessons because I was lousy in bed, and that if I pushed him away I would be alone," she rushed out. She couldn't make eye contact. She had never told anyone all these details before, not even Brooke. Somehow, with Nathan, even though it was embarrassing to reveal all her shortcomings, she felt safe.

"Then, he left, and a few weeks later, I left for college. I told myself that I wouldn't worry about guys or dating. I mean, I hadn't even felt that much being with him, kissing him and stuff. So I figured, maybe I just wasn't like that. Like I wasn't sexual or something. And then I met you…." she trailed off, finally looking him in the eye.

His heart was pounding. He was vacillating between rage at this tool _Dim_ and pride that she felt something with him. He knew he had to say something, but he was so scared that he would screw it up. Finally, he just plunged in, leaning over and resting his hand on her knee. "Haley, I could sit here between now and the end of time and tell you how wrong that guy was. That he must have been blind or something to not see how sexy and beautiful you are. I could tell you that every moment I am with you, whether we are kissing or not, I am totally overcome with how sexy you are. I have only known you for a few short weeks, but in that time, I have realized that you are one of the most amazing people I have ever met. And as for that thing about you not, I mean, that you couldn't, or that you didn't," he stammered, "That's a load of crap. You can, and if you didn't, it was because he didn't care enough." He ran his other hand through his hair and tried to breathe in deeply.

She looked at him, and then pushed herself forward, resting her head on his chest and wrapping her arms around him. "Thanks, Nathan. I wasn't looking for compliments or anything. I just wanted you to know why I feel nervous sometimes. But with you, I don't feel that way as much anymore. I feel different." She pressed a kiss on his neck, below his ear, smiling as she felt him shiver. He pulled back slightly and looked at her face. He ran his fingers through her hair gently and kissed her mouth softly. She pressed back urgently, gently licking at his lips. "Hales," he whispered against her mouth, "We don't have to…" "I want to," she replied, pulling him down on to her as they lay out on the floor.

The urgent kissing continued for several minutes. This was the closest and most intense the kissing had ever been between them. Other than the night they got together, they had only spent a few hours here and there with each other, and most of the time, they weren't really making out. But this was different. Haley couldn't get enough of him. She wanted to feel him all over her. She leaned up to him, pressing her chest against him. Her arms were tight around him, and she still didn't feel close enough. His lips were all over her face and neck, and he was groaning as she kept writhing underneath him. "Haley," he whispered, pressing open-mouthed kisses to her neck. She grunted slightly, "This damn dress." "Huh," he said confused. He was in a fog her kisses, her smell, and the way her warm little body felt under him and it took him a long moment to figure out what was going on. She struggled a bit under him again, "I want, I need to, I mean, I just can't get close enough."

His heart was pounding even harder. He pressed a kiss against her mouth, and then ran his hands down her sides to her hips. Very gently and carefully, he tugged at her dress a bit, so it slid up her thighs. As soon as she felt what he was doing, her hands flew down to his, covering them. He jumped back a bit more. "Haley, I'm so sorry. I got caught up and…" he felt her hands tighten on his, and pull the dress up more. Finally, she moved her legs a bit, so one of his fell between hers. She sighed, and tightened her grip around him again. "So much better," she breathed. "Now where were we?"

He couldn't believe how comfortable she was. He had never expected this, but he was so glad it was happening. His hands were still gripping her hips, and he gently moved one hand up to her side, gently stroking her, before sliding it up further, so his hand was right under her armpit.

Their kisses were frenzied. At times, they were hardly even kisses just frantic movements and pressing of lips and tongues as they pushed their bodies close to each other. She felt his hand dancing at her side, and she wanted him to touch her. She rocked to the side, so his hand brushed her breast. They both stopped. She leaned further into him, forcing her breast into his hand. He gently cupped her through her dress, and she groaned slightly before returning her lips to his jaw line. She loved the way his hands felt on her body, and she could feel the buzzing all throughout her.

After what felt like an eternity of kissing and touching, Haley felt his movements become more sweet and less urgent and frantic. He leaned into her ear, "Want to take a breather?" As much as he didn't want to stop, the way she was wiggling under him, and how good her full breasts felt in his hands, not to mention the taste of her mouth and her skin and little groaning noises she made as she kissed him and he kissed her was almost too much to bear. He needed to lift his body off of hers, even though he didn't want to move.

She pressed another kiss against his mouth. She wanted to be selfish, a say no, forcing him to stay here, laying with her, stroking her sides and cupping her breasts. She loved the way his tongue flicked against her ears and the sound of his heavy breathing in her ears as he sucked on her lobes. But she could feel his hardness against her thigh, and she knew it was difficult for him. Begrudgingly she released him and let him pull back. He exhaled heavily and sat back against the bed. He glanced down at her and immediately wished he hadn't. Her hair was all mussed from him running his fingers through it. Her lips were swollen and pink and he could see the slight glisten on her face and neck and chest from his kisses. The worst though was the way her dress was pulled up her thighs. Her perfect thighs were exposed, and all he wanted to do was run his fingers up and down them. He cursed himself for not thinking to touch them when they were kissing, for not touching her smooth skin. He had gotten so caught up when she moved so he could touch her breasts that he dared not move his hands.

He leaned over, and tugged the bottom of the dress so it covered her thighs more, letting his fingers glide slightly over her skin as he did. She blushed a bit, and bit her bottom lip, "Thanks." He grinned lopsidedly, "No problem. It was too tempting."

She yawned and covered her mouth. He glanced at the clock. It was already 1:15 in the morning. "Tired?" he asked. "Yeah, I didn't realize until I was just laying here," she replied with a smile, "Ready for bed?" He could feel his damn heart starting the pound again. "Uh, yeah, I mean, I can totally go and sleep in the lounge," he stammered. "Nathan, don't be silly, sleep here. You can sleep in my bed, and I will sleep in Brooke's," she said, getting up. She went to her drawer and pulled out some shorts and a tee shirt. "Umm," she said, looking over at him. Then, she turned out the lights. The room was dark, except the moonlight shining in the window. He heard her zipper go down, and he thought his heart was going to stop. Then, he heard the rustle of her dress as it slid down her body and hit the floor. He knew that if he looked over and really focused he could probably make out the shape of her body and see her nearly naked. He kept his eyes down, looking at his hands. He wanted more than anything to see her naked, but he knew that when he finally did, he wanted her to want it too.

She couldn't believe she was standing here in nothing but her panties and bra and he was just a few feet away. She could see his head down, and she waited for a split second. If he came to her, she knew she couldn't stop, and she didn't really know which she preferred, him coming to her, or him sitting on the bed without looking.

She unhooked her bra and dropped it on the floor. She paused again. He heard the next noise as something hit the ground. He wondered if she dropped something, and then he realized. Her bra. She is standing there with no bra on. His palms were sweating and his stomach was nervous. He kept staring intently at his hands, not trusting himself to move his eyes upward at all.

Finally, she pulled the tee shirt over her head and stepped into her shorts. She flicked the lights back on, and they both blinked at the sudden brightness. He looked up, and saw her standing there with a small smile on her face. She knelt down and grabbed the clothes shoving them in her hamper. He was sure he saw something pink and lacy, but he tried not think about it. He stood, and pulled the sheets back on her bed, as she did the same on Brooke's bed. He unbuttoned his shirt and shrugged it off, leaving him standing there in just his jeans. She looked at his perfect chest and grinned.

She hopped into bed, pulled the covers up. "Too slow, you have to turn the lights out!" He smiled, and walked over, turning out the lights. Then, he walked over to her, pressing a kiss against her cheek, leaning in more when she wound her arms around his neck, kissing his mouth. "Ummm, yummy," she breathed.

He stepped back, and sat on her bed. Then, he smirked. She was facing him. He stood and unzipped his pants. She heard the zipper and her heart began pounding. She heard the heavy material drop and him kick them off his ankles and climb into her bed. "Ummm, yummy," he whispered. "What?" she asked. "Your bed smells just like you," he whispered back. They both drifted off to sleep listening to the sounds of the other breathing heavily.

"Wake up," she breathed into his ear. He looked so sexy with his toned chest exposed, and his lips slightly parted, that she hated to wake him, but they had to meet Brooke and Lucas for breakfast. She had pulled on some jeans and put a bra on before she woke him. She ran her fingers over his chest, enjoying the goose bumps, as his heavy eyes struggled open. He broke into a grin when he saw her face. "Hey you," he breathed, grabbing her hand. She leaned in and kissed him, and then said, "I am running to the bathroom; get dressed, we are going to be late for breakfast, and I am starved."

She bounded off the bed and dashed out the door, leaving him laying there. He rolled over and breathed in her pillow. He hadn't slept this good in a long time, breathing in her smell all night. He couldn't wait until he could sleep with her wrapped in his arms, like he had dreamt all night long.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N:

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"Haley," Nathan moaned, as her fingers stroked his bare back. They had been studying for midterms, but Haley's shorts had proved too distracting to Nathan, and they had tangled themselves up in a hot make-out session. In the weeks since the first date, Haley had found herself far more comfortable with Nathan that she had ever felt with Tim. She was in awe of his body. He was so strong and she loved how every muscle in his body rippled. Even when they weren't making out, she liked to run her fingers along his arms and back and chest to watch each of his muscles move. His back was her new favorite space. He had kidded her that she was spoiling him since she insisted on rubbing his back after every game and practice, but in reality, she enjoyed it as much as he did. His lips found her ear and he whispered, "You are so sexy, baby." She grinned into his shoulder and bit him lightly. She pulled back, panting and looked at his face. She could see the want in his eyes, but she wasn't quite ready to move forward with him. As always, she could feel herself starting to pull back. She didn't know why it happened, but she would reach a point every day that she just couldn't cross.

He knew what the signs were that it was done, and he could see the look in her eyes. He pressed a final kiss against her cheek and sat up. He looked around for his shirt, and then noticed she was holding it. "Gimme," he said, gesturing with his hand. She begrudgingly handed the shirt over to him, after holding it up to her face and breathing in his smell deeply.

"So, we are hanging out in your room tonight, and watching a movie with Brooke and Luke?" Haley asked as she watched his beautiful back disappear under the shirt. "Yeah," he replied, rolling his eyes. "Hey I thought you wanted to go," she retorted, smacking his arm. The girls had been bothering to hang out as a group again, and while both boys liked the other's girlfriend, they preferred alone time. They all ate together regularly, and they even ate with each other's significant other if they were in class or working. Lucas and Haley had formed a tight friendship, and while Nathan and Brooke weren't exactly BFF's, they enjoyed their occasional meals when Haley or Luke weren't around.

Nathan got to his feet and started gathering his books. "Hey! You're leaving?" she said sadly, reaching out for him. He grabbed her hand and squeezed, "Babe, you know it's only a matter of time before your sexiness becomes too much for me, and I have to kiss you again. At this rate, I am never going to get studying done. I have to do well on this test. I would much rather stay here and kiss you…." She grinned, and swatted at his butt with her hand. "Okay, I'll forgive you for leaving me. I should really study some more too, so that I can focus on you tonight." He smiled and opened the door, "Okay, kiss you later!" She lay back on the bed after she watched him walk out the door.

He was so perfect. In the weeks since they had gotten together, he had proven time and again that he was kind and gentle. Whether it was him showing up at her class during a rainstorm, because he knew she forgot her umbrella, or bringing over a pint of Ben and Jerry's for her when she was writing a paper, Nathan was supportive and wonderful. Not to mention sexy. She couldn't stop thinking about his body and his hands. When they were together, even if they weren't kissing or touching, her whole body was on edge.

Nathan walked out of Haley's building and took a deep breath. He would have loved to stay with her, even if they weren't going to kiss anymore, but he was uncomfortably turned on, and he had to get home and relieve himself before the ache intensified. He didn't mind that they weren't at that stage yet, but sometimes when they were in the heat of the moment, he just wished that she would be ready. The number of cold showers he had taken in the past weeks was innumerable.

Later that night, they were sprawled out in Lucas and Nathan's room watching videos and eating junk food. With finals the following week, both couples decided to veg out on Friday night, and then start studying on Saturday. Haley lay with her head on Nathan's chest. The boys had selected some dumb comedy, and she loved listening to the deep rumble and vibration of Nathan's chest as he laughed. She rubbed his stomach gently feeling the perfect outline of his muscles under her fingers. He looked down at her and smiled, before turning his attention to the movie.

In that moment, that simple look on his face, Haley felt a shift in her body. She was ready to move forward…..like right now. He looked at her with so much kindness and even love. She didn't think he was in love with her yet. She wasn't sure that she felt it yet either. But she knew that she had loving feelings towards him, and that small look he had just given her had been a glimpse that he felt the same way.

She leaned up and pressed a kiss on his neck, and then whispered, "Let's go to my room…now." He pulled back and looked at her eyes. She often looked a little nervous when she initiated something physical but right now she looked totally calm, and totally turned on. She bit her lower lip and raised her eyebrows, "Do you want to?" Do I want to? he thought, is she crazy? He grinned, and whispered, "I would go anywhere with you."

"Okay, then go," Brooke said, "I am trying to control myself, but I have had enough together time, let's just meet for breakfast tomorrow. I need something that only Luke here can give me." Haley shrieked, "Ew, Brooke, TMI," as she pulled Nathan to his feet. They quickly got their shoes on and headed out the door. By the time the door clicked shut, Brooke and Lucas were already kissing deeply.

"Nathan, if you wanted to see the end of the movie, it's not a big deal," she said, as they interlaced their fingers. He smiled down at her again, and pulled her close to him. "Nah, I would rather be with you."

They walked into her room, and Nathan reached for the lights. As soon as they were turned on, they grabbed each other. Nathan backed them up to the bed, and slowly lowered Haley down. He toed off his shoes, and then stood at her feet, pulling off each shoe. He lay down over her, bracing his weight on his forearms, and began kissing her. Slow, deep kisses. Haley couldn't breathe she was so turned on. She was grabbing at him, his arms and chest and back. Her hands delved lower to grab his ass and pull him close to her. Instinctively, she felt her legs fall open slightly so he could nestle between them. Feeling the close contact of their most intimate areas, they both groaned in unison.

She pulled for his shirt, trying to pull it off. He yanked it off, sat back, and smirked at her. "What's the rush, Hales?" She smirked back and then leaned forward to kiss his chest. When she felt him groan and his hands press her head closer to him, she smirked again. She laid kisses all over his chest before leaning over and flicking her tongue against his nipple gently.

She leaned back and looked up, "Do you like that?" He grinned, "I like anything involving your tongue and my body." "No I mean specifically that," she said, leaning forward to do it again. He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her mouth. "It's fine, I mean, like I said, your tongue, my body, perfection. But it isn't too much more exciting than the other places you kiss me."

"Okay, I like to make you feel good. And I know girls are supposed to like it," she continued, pressing kisses to his chest. God, she is so sexy and she doesn't even realize it, he thought.

"Do you like it, Hales?" he whispered, stroking her long hair. She paused. "I don't know, I mean, I am, I never," she stammered, blushing a bit. He bent and captured her lips, suckling them, and licking at the insides of her mouth until she moaned against his lips. "Do you want to find out?" he asked tentatively. She looked up at his face again, trying not to turn bright red, and saw _that_ look. The look instantly calmed her down. She nodded her head slowly.

He kissed her again, this time more gently and passionately but still exploring her mouth with his tongue. His hands moved to the edge of her shirt and he began edging it up. He stopped to stroke her stomach gently before rubbing small circles on her bare back. He felt her quivering, and then continued moving the shirt up and over her head. She sat there in just a bra, her chest heaving. She reached for him, pulling him close to hide her exposed body. They fell back onto the bed again, with Nathan's body covering hers. He looked into her eyes. "Hales, we don't have to do anything you don't want to do," he said. She smiled weakly and ran her fingers through his hair.

"I want you, Nathan," she breathed, moving his hand from her side to her back near her bra strap. He could feel his chest pounding. His heart might stop. He gulped and leaned down to kiss her chest slowly. He didn't want to rush her. He wanted to make her feel so good she would beg him to remove her bra. She hadn't learned about sex the right way, through anticipation and hot make-out sessions. He wanted her to want this.

Her mouth grew dry as he began licking and sucking and kissing her chest. He pressed kisses all over her chest and down on to her breasts. His nose tickled her skin as breathed against her and breathed her scent in deeply. Her hands were scraping his scalp and tugging gently on his hair. She couldn't stop the mewling noises.

He loved the way she felt under him. Her breathing was so quick, and her hands in his hair was like a direct line to his cock. When he felt her hips rock slightly against his, he moved his hand from the small soft circles it was tracing on her stomach and back, to her bra, and quickly undid it. She felt the material loosen and knew that her breasts were very close to free. She gasped for air and kept her eyes screwed shut. She could feel his fingers slowly move around to the front of her again, this time tracing where the bottom of the bra had been. Another millimeter and his fingers would stroke the underside of her breasts. She wanted to wiggle slightly so his fingers would have to touch her, but she was loving the anticipation of not knowing when it was coming.

His hands itched to rip off her bra and hold her breasts in his hands, but he committed himself to being the best he could be for her, and he knew this slow teasing exploration of her body was making her insane with want. Finally, when he heard her grunt slightly as his fingers began tracing her ribs again, he began moving his hands up slowly. The whole time he was touching her, he was placing tiny kisses on her skin, little flicks of his tongue, and even an occasionally nip of his teeth. He felt his fingers brush the underside of her breasts. He exhaled heavily, finally reaching the place he wanted to be, while she drew in another deep breath, unsure if her body could handle any more delicious torment before she exploded.

He tickled the underside of her breasts for a moment, exploring the baby soft skin, before pulling the bra away. He closed his eyes, and ducked his head to begin laving wet kisses on the underside of her breast. Her eyes rolled back in her head. She had no idea that underneath her breasts was so sensitive. His tongue was licking and sucking and she could feel the moans bubbling in her throat.

She could feel his hot breath moving up higher even before she felt his mouth on her. He was kissing everywhere but her nipples. She could feel them tightening and contracting with every flick of his tongue and wet sucking kiss. She desperately wanted him to kiss her there, but she lay there waiting.

He was panting; she tasted so good. He loved breasts. But he really really loved Haley's. They were the perfect size, he could tell. He hadn't even really held them yet, except over her clothes. But he wanted to see them. He was convinced by her light moans and heavy breathing that he was doing a good enough job to deserve a peek. He opened his eyes and looked at her. He was momentarily surprised that his eyes were drawn to her face first. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her perfect heaving breasts, but he studied her face carefully.

He could see a faint sheen of sweat on her face, and she was biting her bottom lip so hard he was afraid she might break the skin. Her brow was furrowed, and her eyes clenched shut. He leaned up and kissed her mouth. Her lips immediately responded. She loved kissing him, and she had to admonish herself for being temporarily disappointed that his lips were on hers and not on another part of her body. He leaned back, and looked at her face. She must have felt his eyes on her, and she blinked her eyes open.

He smiled softly at her, "How are you doing?" She couldn't stop the grin from forming across her face, "So good, baby," she whispered. "Do you want me to keep going?" he asked, stroking her cheek. She nodded enthusiastically. "Good," he murmured, as he shifted his body down more, "I want to too." Then, she felt it. His fingers brushing against one of her nipples. It was just a quick brush, as he circled her whole breast with his fingertips. She inhaled sharply. He looked up at her, and saw this time she was watching him. He liked to be watched. Without moving his eyes from hers, he circled her nipple again with his finger. She gnawed on her bottom lip and arched her back slightly. He lowered his face and blew gently on her nipples. She moaned loudly. He couldn't help himself, from lowering his face further and taking her nipple in his mouth. "Yes," she breathed.

Hearing her whisper encouragement urged him on; he began sucking hard on the pink tips. He pulled off her, hearing her happy grunt before moving to the other nipple and giving it the same treatment. She couldn't think beyond how good this felt. He was so good, so very very good. Her hands were rubbing his head and shoulders, and she couldn't stop the reactions in her body.

She had never felt so wonderfully uncontrolled. It was like her hips and back had minds of their own with the involuntarily thrusting and arching. And then the moaning. She couldn't stop it. It came from somewhere deep inside her, and she couldn't help it. Every time the sensations got to be too much, she just moaned, and it was like a tiny release.

She was sprawled out on her back, and he was resting his face on her chest, below her chin, so he could lavish attention to both breasts. She couldn't see anymore, which was both disappointing and a blessing. Seeing his red tongue flicking aginst her skin had been almost too much to bear.

She could feel him stroking her stomach with one hand, and she was overcome with the need to have him move his hand lower. She knew that she was wet; she could feel it. It happened when they were kissing a lot, but today was different; she had never felt such an ache between her legs before. It was like something was missing.

She also knew he would never do it unless she told him she wanted him to do it. She moved her hand to his, interlocking their fingers and squeezing. She gently tugged his hand down, and placed it at the button of her jeans.

He lifted his head, releasing her nipple with an audible pop. "Haley," he said unsure, what she meant. She cleared her throat, and said, "I want you to touch me, Nathan."

His mouth fell open. He pulled back slightly from her and took in the situation. She is laying there was her hair spread out like a curtain behind her. Her lips are red and swollen. She is sweaty and her beautiful naked breasts are heaving. They were covered with tiny red marks from his overzealous kisses and nips. He reached out and cupped one in his hand, feeling the weight of it, before rubbing it gently where he had nibbled and sucked, hoping he wouldn't leave a mark to mar the creamy skin.

She groaned again. Then, she could feel the apprehension building. What if he doesn't want to touch me? she thought. Before she could further entertain the thought, he was diving into kiss her mouth. "Hales," he mumbled against her lips, "I don't want to push you." "You're not," she said more firmly than she anticipated, "I need to feel you."

As soon as he heard her say, "need," he couldn't stop. He returned his hand to the button of her jeans and slowly unsnapped it. He tugged gently on the fabric so it would come off her hips. He yanked a little more roughly when it came past her thighs, and then flung them on the floor. He lay back next to her, and pulled her close, cupping her ass in his hands. She cuddled into him and began sucking on his neck.

"Nathan," she whispered, "I want you so much. I am not ready to go all the way, but God, I want you." He couldn't even believe this was happening. His amazingly beautiful girlfriend is laying in his arms wearing only black lacy boy shorts, telling him how much she wants him. He had never been this hard in his life. His erection was pressing against his jeans, but he couldn't remove his hands from her body to relieve the pressure. He pulled her close, so that she was lying with her side to his chest. Since she was so tiny, she fit against him perfectly. His lips were right below her ear. His one arm was under her back, so that he could continue to stroke her nipples, and his other hand began its descent to her center. He rubbed small circles around her belly button, before brushing his fingers lower. He could feel her stiffen slightly, so he kept his fingers just below her belly button, gently stroking her soft skin.

He began stroking her nipple gently with the opposite hand, while he sucked on her neck just below her ear. It was so intense, she started to shake, and then she heard his voice. "Relax, baby. I am right here. I have you. I won't do anything you don't want me to do. I want to make you feel good," he breathed in her ear. She felt her body relax into him further, and his hand continued its slow descent.

As his fingers reached the lace of her panties, he delved underneath, still avoiding her center. He traced a line between her hipbones and petted her soft skin slowly. Her eyes clenched shut again, and she moved her head back slightly. He took advantage of her movement, and began kissing further down her neck. She turned her face, and blinked her eyes open. He stared into her deep brown eyes, and smiled. "You are so beautiful," he told her. And then he moved his hand lower.

She felt him trace her lower lips gently. She continued staring into his eyes. She wanted to look away; it was embarrassing to have him staring at her while he stroked her, but he was so sexy and his eyes were so blue that she couldn't stop.

He forced himself to just trace the seam of her lips gently, in case she wanted to stop. She was staring at him so intently he almost forgot to breathe. When he realized she didn't want him to stop, he pressed ever so slightly on her mound, and slid his finger between her outer lips. His fingers were drenched. "Fuck," he swore softly, and buried his head in her neck. He wanted to keep looking at her, but he had to kiss her again. He sucked on her neck, and began tugging on her nipple, while his other hand explored her wetness.

In her head, Haley chanted, Fuck, Fuck, Fuck over and over. Nothing in her life had ever felt this good. His big thick fingers were petting her gently. He was so perfect. He knew what she wanted before she even did. When she felt him nudge her clit, she shrieked happily and thrust against him. "Oh Nathan," she babbled, "Oh God, you're so good. Don't stop." He grinned against her neck and sped up his ministrations just slightly. Her breathing was ragged and her hips began to rock against his hand. He left her clit and brushed one his fingers against her entrance. "Oh, oh," she whispered into his neck. Her fingers were digging into his arm, and she moved one hand down and stroked the arm that was between her legs.

She wanted more of something, but she couldn't be sure what it was. She spread her legs further, and leaned into him harder. She was getting hysterical it felt so good. Then, he started whispering to her. He put his face right next to her ear, never stop the torturous circles he traced around her nipple before he gave it a rub, nor the delicious stroking of her center, spreading her moisture and nudging her hard clit perfectly.

"Haley, Haley," he whispered in her ear, "You are so fucking wet. So perfectly, deliciously wet. Is all that for me?" She didn't answer him, so he stopped moving his fingers on her body. "Is that wetness for me, baby?" he asked again. She began nodding her head vigorously, "Uh huh," she breathed. "Good. I love that you are so wet for me. Can you feel this?" he said, as he ground his hard cock into her side. "This is how you make me feel. I love touching you. I could touch you all day."

He could hear her moaning get more and more frantic. Her hips were jerking erratically, and he begrudgingly moved his hand from her nipple to her hip so he could hold her down. "Relax, sweetheart. Just give in to the feelings. I want you to feel good. Do you?" She remembered the last time she didn't answer that he stopped touching her, so she began babbling, "Yes. God, I feel so good. Your fingers are so fucking good." He smirked into her neck and pressed a wet kiss below her ear. "You never curse. Do I make you feel like saying bad words?" She nodded her head vigorously. "Do you know what happens to amazingly sexy girls who say bad words when their boyfriends are stroking their wet pussies?" She shook her head, "No," she bleated. "They get to come really hard," he breathed back before latching his lips on her earlobe and sucking.

"I am going to make you come so hard, baby. Just relax. Let me make you feel good," he whispered into her ear. She couldn't stop the moans. One moan led into another and her whole body was shaking. She felt like she was exploding. "Please," she whispered. "Please, what, gorgeous?" he asked quickening his speed on her clit. "Please make me come, Nathan," she moaned, turning to face him.

He leaned into her face and kissed her, pressing his tongue into her mouth, as his finger began moving lightening fast over her clit. He felt her orgasm start and he never felt that happy or proud in his whole life. She was keening with pleasure and rocking into him. "Nathan," she shrieked as the final wave rushed over her and she began coming down.

He didn't stop the touching, just lightened his touch, and moved away from her sensitive clit. He stroked her stomach and quivering thighs, feeling the wetness that had dripped all the way down her to her smooth thighs. He pressed kisses to her breasts, suckling very lightly on her nipples. As he felt the tremors in her body still, he just held her to him, whispering in her ear, how beautiful she was and how sexy it was to watch her come.

Her mind was just colors. She couldn't think in words or anything more than colors. She couldn't move her legs or arms, and she let him continue to touch her limp body as she floated back down. She rolled her head to the side and opened her eyes.

He lay there with a huge grin on his face. Watching her come had been one of the most thrilling things he ever witnessed. She was so beautiful. He momentarily thought of Dim and wondered how he could never have wanted to do this for her. Then, he banished him from his mind when she grinned at him.

"Oh my God," she breathed, kissing him gently. "I never, I mean, I heard it was amazing, and Brooke is always talking about how incredible, but I never dreamed it would be like that. Wow." She rolled over slightly so they were facing each other and just stared into his face. He was giving her the look. The wonderful, safe, kind, full of sweetness look. She looked down at her body, briefly embarrassed that she was laying there all disheveled and naked. And then she thought of where his lips and fingers had just been and realized it didn't matter.

"Are you thirsty?" she asked. "Yeah," he said. He didn't really want her to move; he liked holding her. She slid out of bed still wearing only her panties, and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and giggled. "God, look at me!" Her hair was a cloud of curls and her face and neck were red from his face brushing against them. She looked down and saw her breasts and chest covered in a sheen of sweat and his kisses. She could feel the wetness all over her thighs and center as she walked on her still shaky legs.

"You have never looked more beautiful," he said honestly. She climbed back into bed and knelt beside him. He tried not to stare at her perfect breasts, but it was hard when they were just so close. She handed him the bottle of water, and glanced down. She could see the big bulge on his lap.

As he chugged some water, she started thinking, he just made me feel like I was flying, I want to make him feel good too. She reached out and traced her finger down his length. He spit a mouthful of cold water all over her. "Ugh," she laughed, wiping at the cold water droplets on her face and chest. "Sorry," he croaked, "I wasn't expecting that."

She leaned into him, keeping her hand over his cock. "I want to make you feel as good as you made me feel." He looked at her face. Of course he wanted her to touch him. His cock was begging for release, but he didn't want her to think that's why he did this. "Baby, you don't have to touch me. I mean, this isn't tit for tat. I touched you because I wanted to do it. Because I wanted you to feel good. It doesn't have to be about me tonight."

She smirked, "And you think I don't want to touch you? You think I haven't wondered about you when I felt this brush against me?" His mouth fell open slightly. She kissed him, forcing her tongue into his mouth, and swirling it around his. She unzipped his jeans and began tugging them. He lifted his hips to help. When she got his jeans to his knees she yanked them off and dropped them over her shoulder. Licking her lips, she leaned forward and slid her hand beneath his boxer briefs.

"Jesus," he moaned. "No, I'm Haley," she smirked, as she wrapped her fingers around his length. He wanted to roll his eyes at her dumb joke but he couldn't think beyond her hand on his cock. He was so big and hard, but at the same time, there was a silky softness to his sensitive skin. She couldn't stop running her hand up and down and spreading the moisture flowing from him. "Hales, baby, I am not going to last, I mean, usually, I can, but fuck," he babbled, as he reached out to spear his fingers in her hair. She pressed a kiss to his lips before lowering her head to his ear. "Shh, baby. I have you. I want to make you come so hard. After all that time you spent touching me and feeling how much I want you. Relax. I have you," she chanted. He could feel the tingle building in his balls, and his hips began to thrust up to meet her hand. Finally, he couldn't stop it, and he exploded all over her hand.

He blew out a shaky breath, and looked over and saw her grinning. She kissed him deeply, and then slid out of bed to grab a hand towel to clean them up. After she wiped his stomach and her hand, she hopped back off the bed and walked towards the hamper. With her back to him, he could see her wiping at her thighs and he almost came again remembering how wet she had been as his fingers stroked her. She turned off the lights and slid back into bed.

They hadn't slept together before. Before, it was too much for him to sleep all tangled up with her, and he didn't want her to feel bad that he was constantly sporting an erection, but tonight, to be able to sleep with her head on his chest and her arms around him, was almost better than finally feeling her little hands on his cock. "How do you feel, baby?" he asked, pressing a kiss to her head. She giggled, "So good, but exhausted." "Well, I did make you work, and God knows, that was the best workout I have had in a long time," he murmured. They both giggled quietly. "Good night, baby," she whispered. "Good night," he replied softly. He held her tightly until he felt her body relax into his and then he let himself drift off to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Hey! This chapter skips ahead about 3-4 weeks from the previous. I have left timelines fairly loose, but it is around the end of April and Naley have been together about 3 months. Brooke and Lucas have probably been seeing each other about 4 months, but serious for about 3 and a half months.

Also, I am honestly blown away with the awesome reviews I have been getting. I never thought of myself as a creative writer, but I have really enjoyed sharing some ideas with you. I struggled in the previous chapter wondering if some would think it was coming too fast, but I didn't get that from any of the reviewers, so I hope that I didn't lose anyone who didn't review! Basically, Haley has been waiting for someone to come along and help her to see who she really is and what life, love, and sex can really be. She made a mention to wanting to go back to be the strong and confident girl she was before Tim, and Nathan is helping to restore that. I thought that this was part of what happened on the show, and why they chose to have Haley leave on tour, even though it was so selfish, and even though Nathan didn't really deserve any of the heartache b/c he wasn't a jerk like my Tim is. Rather, I like the idea that she gets caught up and loses some of herself in that relationship and then needs to find a way back to her own personal strength so she can be "worthy" of that kind of a relationship. I hope that is clear or at least believable!!!

Anyway, I hope I haven't spoiled with the regular updates. I wish I had thought of this idea sooner, so I could have written more while I had the summer free, but I am headed back to teaching next week, and I was in meetings all this past week, so I know a lot of my time will be taken up. I promise not to abandon this story; it just may be a while depending on how busy school makes me. Please review, and hang on because I have some amazing things planned for this story, if I do say so myself!

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"Hales, are you bringing a curling iron?" Brooke asked, as she dug through her closet tossing various items behind her on to the bed. "Umm, yeah," Haley said, digging through her suitcase to be sure she had placed it in the bag. Haley giggled when she turned and saw nearly everything in Brooke's closet on the bed.

"Brooke," she said in a teasing voice. "You do realize that the boys have asked us to come to Tree Hill for Easter weekend, not for the next 4 months, right?" Brooke rolled her eyes. "Of course, Haley," she said exasperatedly, "I just need options. I mean, I have to make a good impression, I am not Miss Haley James perfect girlfriend meet the parents' material." Now it was Haley's turn to roll her eyes. She was totally nervous about meeting Dan and Karen Scott, Lucas and Nathan's parents.

She and Nathan had been dating for about three months now, and in the time they had been together, she had heard nothing but wonderful stories about the Scott family. She knew the special bond the boys had with their mother and the good-natured ribbing and teasing they experienced from their father. He had been a star basketball player in high school, but suffered an injury in college. Both boys seemed to want to be able to help make his dreams of playing throughout college and possibly professionally come true; whereas, he only wanted them to enjoy the game.

The girls finished packing their suitcases for the long weekend in Tree Hill, and headed down to wait in the lounge of their building for the boys to come and pick them up. When Nathan came into the lounge, he couldn't stop the grin from spreading across his face. He had dated in high school but he never brought a girl home to meet his parents. He knew they were going to fall in love with Haley.

"Hey sweetie," Haley said, dragging her bag towards him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up so her feet were dangling off the ground. He loved burying his face in her neck and breathing her scent in. "Ummm, you smell so good," he said into her neck. She giggled feeling his lips moving against the sensitive skin.

"Ugh, Brooke, love, what the hell did you bring?" Lucas whined as he picked up her bags. "Yeah, hi to you too," she said exasperated. He looked over and saw her, hand on hip, tapping her foot, with her signature eyebrow kinked, and he couldn't help but laugh. He dropped her bags, dipped her low, and pressed his lips against hers passionately. He continued the intense kiss until he felt her legs wobble, and then he pulled her back up against him, still supporting her slightly, and whispered in her ear, "Hi, baby."

Brooke could feel her heart pounding; she loved when he kissed her like that. She pulled her head back, and smirked at him, "Now that's more like it." He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead and released his grip on her, returning to her pile of bags. "But seriously babe, what the hell is in these things? We are only going to be in Tree Hill for 3 nights!" he whined again.

Haley couldn't help but laugh. She had told Brooke that she was over packing, but Brooke couldn't be stopped. She needed options, and each of her options required shoes and accessories. Haley had managed to pare her selections down to a modest duffel and toiletry bag. "And I am the one that packed the curling iron and flat iron!" she added, sticking her tongue out at Brooke. Brooke stuck her tongue out at Haley and replied, "Babe, I am meeting your mom and dad for the first time, and I have to look perfect!" She sauntered towards the door carrying her purse and a small make up case. Lucas followed behind her grumbling with her bags hooked on his body as if he was a pack mule.

Haley leaned down to pick up her bag chuckling, and Nathan jumped in front of her to scoop it up. "Not so fast, missy, I will carry that for you," he said, hooking the strap over his shoulder and wrapping his arm around Haley. She looked up at him, "Your parents are going to like me, right?" she asked hopefully. He couldn't help but grin. She looked so sweet and beautiful; how could she think his parents wouldn't like her? "They are going to love you, babe," he replied. She grinned back and wrapped her arm around his waist pulling him towards the door.

Haley's nerves had been on edge the entire ride. The only positive part about either feeling like she could puke or pass out at any moment was the fact that she managed to tune out the bickering between the other three over the music selection. After what felt like an eternity, they pulled onto a street lined with modest sized homes. Lucas slowed the car in front of the largest house on the street, and pulled into the driveway. Haley could see a petite brown haired woman come flying out the front door grinning, with a large bear of a man trailing behind her. "Oooh my babies," Karen squealed, clapping her hands. "Geez, Mom," Lucas teased, as he walked over to embrace her, "It's only been a couple weeks since you were up at school to see us play." "Yeah, Mom. Weren't you the one that grumbled about us all summer?" Nathan ribbed before he wrapped his arms around her to give her a tight hug. Dan chuckled to himself, clapping both boys on the back soundly, "She grumbles about me all the time, maybe I should leave for a few weeks to get this kind of a welcome."

Karen shot them all a hurt look, "Can't a mother be happy to see her baby boys? Whom she lugged around inside her for 9 months? Whom she labored with for 26 hours? Whom she nursed for another 8 months? Who …." "Okay, Okay!" all three men cut in, surrendering. "We're happy to see you too," Lucas said, and Nathan nodded enthusiastically.

"Good, now where are these lovely ladies I have heard so much about?" Karen asked peeking towards the car, where Haley and Brooke stood waiting patiently. "Where are your manners, boys?" Dan bellowed, pushing past his sons to walk towards the girls. "I am Dan Scott, and this is my wife, Karen. We are so happy to have you join us for the holiday, and we really appreciate you both putting up with our boys. You both are already aces in my book," he said warmly, extending his hands to each girl. Karen walked over quickly, and wrapped her arms around both girls, pulling them into a group hug. "I am so glad to meet the wonderful women who seemed to have tamed my boys! I have heard such wonderful things."

Haley and Brooke both smiled and blushed at the same time. Their parents were so warm and friendly it was impossible not to like them. Dan extended an arm to each girl to escort her into the house, while Karen dashed off ahead calling back something about cookies in the oven. Dan looked over his shoulder and called to the boys to get their suitcases.

"So there they were, naked as jaybirds playing in the mud. I mean, not a stitch on them. I about died, I laughed so hard. Then, I ran to get the camera to capture it. My two little boys, rolling around in the mud, pretending to be pigs," Karen said, as she gasped for breath. Haley and Brooke were laughing so hard tears rolled down their faces, and even Dan seemed to be enjoying the boys' obvious discomfort. "Geez, Mom," Nathan said, trying not to blush. "Sorry, Nate, but it was just too cute. Your little heinies all muddy and both of you oinking like piggies," Karen continued. With that final outburst, Nathan and Lucas both rose to begin clearing the table. "Well now, if that's all I have to do to get the table cleared, I have about a million other naked stories to tell," she teased, handing Nathan another plate. The girls looked at each other for what felt like the millionth time since they arrived and grinned. It was impossible not to feel at home in the Scott house.

Later that evening, after listening to more embarrassing and proud stories of Nathan and Lucas growing up, Dan and Karen headed up to bed, leaving the four downstairs to talk. Haley leaned into Nathan enjoying the way his arms were wrapped around her. She turned her head to whisper to him, "I am kind of exhausted. I hardly got any sleep last night." "Why, baby?" he whispered, nuzzling his face in her hair. "I was nervous," she admitted, "I was afraid your parents might not like me or that I would act all weird and you would be disappointed." He pulled back to look at her, and then pushed her forward gently, so he could stand up. "Haley and I are going to go out back for a minute so I can show her the pool," he announced, and dragged her out of the room. When they got outside, Haley was temporarily stunned by their gorgeous backyard. "Nathan, this is so lovely," she whispered, taking in the beautiful landscaping, the massive in ground pool, and the Jacuzzi tub. He smiled, and led her by the hand to a small garden, where there was a swing with a trellis covered in honeysuckle. He sat first, and pulled her down, so she was sitting on his lap, with her legs dangling. "Haley, what did you mean, disappoint me?" he asked gently, tucking some hair behind her ear. She tried to look away, but his hand held her cheek so she closed her eyes gently instead. "Babe, can you look at me please?" he asked. "It's nothing, I mean; no one has ever wanted me to meet their parents before. And Tim…" she trailed off.

She hated to bring him up, because everything with Nathan was going so well. He was everything Tim wasn't, and she was so lucky and happy to be with him. But even when things went well with Tim, he seemed to just creep up. "Tim. I really hate that guy. What did he say?" Nathan growled gently. "Nothing, Nathan. It's not that big of a deal. He just mentioned a couple times that he wouldn't want to bring me home to his parents because I wasn't as pretty as his brother's girlfriend, and I was so nerdy that I wouldn't have anything to talk to them about, since his mother is very fashionable," she rushed out, looking down at her hands.

"God," he bit out. "Haley, listen carefully to me when I say this. You are beautiful, and did you see how well dinner went? You were a natural. Joking with my dad. Talking about cooking with my mom. God even the way you teased me. It was as if you were a part of this family. Do you know I wasn't nervous for even a second about bringing you home? I didn't have a second thought at introducing you to my parents. Well, other than that they might embarrass me." he joked. "But honestly, please, don't worry. They love you. My mom told me so when she came into the kitchen to make sure Lucas and I were doing the dishes right."

Haley looked up and smiled, "Really? They do like me?" "Of course they do, babe. We all do," he said, leaning in to kiss her lips. She felt herself melting into him, opening her mouth to allow his tongue to tangle with hers. She moaned softly when she felt him shift his body so he could hold her tighter. Kissing Nathan was like nothing else she had ever experienced. He was so passionate about it. His tongue and lips moved in perfect harmony, and his hands gently stroked her back and held her body against his. "Nathan," she breathed, tugging at his hair slightly. She felt his hand duck beneath her shirt, and she knew they had to stop. In the days prior to coming to Tree Hill, they had spent extra time touching and kissing, almost like they each knew they were unconsciously storing up for the long weekend. If his hands kept tracing those perfect patterns on her skin, she knew she would have an even harder time stopping.

He loved the way her skin felt. He hadn't intended on moving his hand under her shirt, but it was too tempting. It was like silk. He had asked her one day when they were laying on his bed kissing and pretending to study what kind of lotion she used to make her body so soft, and she had blushed saying she only really lotioned her legs and arms. He felt her body pulling away gently, and heard her call his name with a little more firmness. He pulled back and looked at her. God, she was so gorgeous. "Sorry, you are just too good," he whispered. She grinned back, leaning her forehead against his. "You too. Now come on and show me where I am sleeping," she said, standing up and holding out her hand.

The next day, the boys took the girls on a tour of Tree Hill. They saw the high school, the Rivercourt, and ended up at Karen's Café where they enjoyed lunch. That afternoon they lazed around the house, watching the boys play basketball on their own regulation sized court and listened to Dan tell them stories about the boys in high school and their basketball accomplishments.

Karen arrived home around 3:45. "Hey to what do we owe the honor of an early arrival," Dan said, as he stood to hug his wife. "Dan, Jeannette just came into the café and reminded me about the party this evening in Raleigh at the Millers' new house. I can't believe we forgot. And I can't believe they are having it Easter weekend," she said incredulously. Nathan and Lucas had stopped playing and came over to their parents. "So what does that mean?" Lucas asked. "Well, unfortunately, we booked the room when we RSVPed, and it is nonrefundable, since the cancellation would be under 24 hours. So we are going to Raleigh for the evening, and abandoning our houseguests in the hands of our sons. God help us all," she said dramatically, breaking into a slight smile when she saw the hurt looks on Lucas and Nathan's faces. "Come on, Dan, we have very little time to get ready and get on the road. Now boys, do I need to go over ground rules for the house?" she asked looking sternly at her sons. "Mrs. Scott, we'll watch them," Brooke said seriously. "I'm sure you will," Karen said with a laugh, dragging Dan off to get dressed.

About an hour later, the couple reemerged dressed up carrying overnight bags. Dan looked at the four youngsters sitting on the couch, and took a deep breath, "Now boys, I am far too young and too good looking to be a grandfather, so please, keep it in your pants," he warned. "Dad!" the boys whined in unison. Karen piped up, "Really, I mean, Scott men tend to make big babies. Just keep that in mind." Brooke and Haley both blushed and looked at their hands. "Come on, Karen, I think we successfully scared and embarrassed them all enough to ensure that we will remain without grandchildren at least for this weekend," Dan joked, gently leading his wife from the room.

The four waited until they heard the front door slam shut, and then exhaled deeply. Nathan rubbed his face with his hand, and then looked at the others, "What should we do now?" he asked. Lucas jumped to his feet, and pulled Brooke to hers. "We, uh, need to check on something, upstairs," he said, yanking on her arm. "Right, something really important. We'll, uh, see you…..tomorrow," she grinned, and walked quickly behind him. Haley looked up at Nathan and smiled, "And then there were two." He grinned back.

Haley sighed. She loved snuggling with Nathan. He was so much bigger than she was that it was like having the ultimate pillow, only instead of being soft, he was deliciously hard and sculpted. She leaned into him further, and pulled his arms tighter around her. She tried to focus on the movie they were watching, but it was hard when she was so stimulated.

God, he was hard. He was trying to keep it from poking her in the back, but every time she sighed and leaned into him, or tossed her hair in his face so he could breathe in a deep whiff of her shampoo, his dick got even harder. He tried not to focus on how perfect her soft little body fit into his, and how her amazing ass was snuggled against him. He willed his penis to go down. He and Haley had amazing chemistry, and she was so incredibly sexy, but she wanted to wait and go slow, and he didn't want to rush her or pressure her.

"Uh, Hales, are you thirsty? I am thirsty. Let's take a break and grab some drinks and something to eat," he said quickly, as he rearranged her, and stood, stalking out of the living room. She giggled under breath. She felt him against her back, and she knew how tough it must be for him. He never could tell how turned on she was until she was ready for him, whereas his arousal stood out—clearly.

She stood and stretched. She walked slowly out of the living room towards the kitchen, looking at all the pictures along the way. There were the typical family shots: Christmases, Halloweens, barbeques, and days at the pool through the years. There were also a series of framed birthday shots of both Lucas and Nathan from babies in their bassinets, up until this past year, grinning with their arms around each other. She smiled, tracing Nathan's smile with her fingertips. She moved to the next group of pictures. Proms. Lucas' dates were all sweet girls, some blonds, and some brunettes. None were particularly stunning. She made a mental note to call Brooke's attention to the display tomorrow. Then, she looked at Nathan's. Each girl was more beautiful than the one before. It appeared that Nathan attended every school dance, even those dances of a different class. One of the pictures it was clear was of a young Nathan and an older girl, perhaps a senior when he was a freshman or sophomore. Then, there was his senior prom picture. He looked devastatingly gorgeous in his tuxedo and his date was a vision. She looked like she could be a model. She tried to block the image of a perfectly beautiful date doing what "normal" kids did on prom night with her Nathan.

She walked slowly to the next group of pictures. They looked the most recent. It must have been this past summer, before they headed off to school. There was that girl again. Beautiful and perfect in a bikini sitting on Nathan's shoulders in the pool. Her body was flawless; it was everything that Haley's wasn't. Haley blinked back some tears. She couldn't think clearly. This was what he wanted. This is what he had had before. And now he was with her? She glanced up and looked in the mirror hanging on the wall. She wasn't anything special. She certainly wasn't sexy like his prom date.

"Hales!" Nathan called from the kitchen. He had assembled a whole array of different munchies and grabbed a couple bottles of water. He laid the spread out on the kitchen table. He still needed a minute before they could go back to snuggling up against each other. The moment he heard her footsteps he started to smile. The best parts of his day were when she walked into a room. In that first moment, that they saw each other he felt all the other stuff fall away: basketball, school, making his parents' proud, competing with Lucas. It was just them.

He felt his face fall when he saw Haley's, as she entered the kitchen. "What's wrong?" he said quickly, going to stand by her. "Nothing," she muttered. "Hales, tell me! What is wrong?" he asked again more firmly. "Did you have a girlfriend in high school?" she whispered. "Huh? No, not a girlfriend, just some girls I dated," he replied confused. "Well, who is the girl you took to the prom?" she asked, a little more accusingly than she intended. "Just a girl from the cheerleading squad," he mumbled. Why did she care? he asked himself. "Oh, so is that like your type?" she asked quickly, "I mean, do you prefer cheerleaders?" "What?" he said suddenly, "Hales, I don't know where this is coming from. Yes, I have dated cheerleaders. But…" "Well what do you expect, Nathan," she bit out, getting increasingly more mad at nothing in particular, "I mean, it seems you have dated a bunch of pretty people."

"God, Hales, yes I have dated some pretty girls but I would much rather be with you than with some pretty girl," he replied, reaching for her hand. His words stung her. Some pretty girl, she thought to herself. "I need to get out of here," she mumbled, and walked quickly out the door, grabbing Lucas' car keys on her way out.

She didn't really know where she was going. Literally, she had no idea how to get anywhere in Tree Hill. She drove down the street until she hit a dead end and then turned left. Suddenly she was at the docks. It was late, so there wasn't anyone around. She parked his car and walked over to the nearest table, and sat down, facing the water. Once she was seated, she let the tears roll down her cheeks. She couldn't wipe away the image of him with the beautiful girls. Then to hear him say it, some pretty girl. All the times he had whispered in her ear how gorgeous she was had been a lie. Those other girls were the pretty ones. She was just plain Haley.

Nathan had run out the door behind Haley and jogged down the street. He was thankful that she was a cautious driver and had moved fairly slowly down the street. He saw the lights turn the corner at the dead end, and as he began running even faster towards the dead end, he prayed that she just stopped at the docks without going further. He jogged past the car, and slowed to a walk as he approached her, trying to catch his breath. She was sitting on the table with her shoulders heaving gently. He knew she was crying, but he wasn't entirely sure why. He walked slowly towards her and sat down beside her on the table. She didn't move away, but she also didn't lean into him, as she usually did when he was next to her.

They sat for long moments without speaking. Nathan's heart was breaking as he heard her trying to catch her breath. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw her scrubbing at her cheeks to wipe away the tracks from the tears. Finally, he couldn't take the silence. "Hales," he whispered. "Hmm," she whispered back. "What happened?" he asked gently. "I don't know," she replied honestly. "I mean, one second I am getting snacks, and then you are blowing up," he continued, turning his body slightly so he could look at her. "Jesus Nathan, I'm sorry," she blew out, running her fingers through her hair. "No, I don't care about that," he said, "I just want to know why." "Because I can't compete. I can't compete with someone who looks like that. And you even said it yourself," she said softly. "Said what?" he replied puzzled. "That you didn't want to date a pretty girl, you wanted me. Eventually, you are going to want what I can't give you, and I don't want to get hurt again," she said carefully, before standing and walking over towards the water.

Nathan exhaled heavily. "Haley, what can I say? I tell you every day that you are beautiful. When I said that, I didn't mean that you weren't pretty, I meant that you were so much more than just pretty."

"That's sweet Nathan, but I have seen the pictures. And I see the girls who hang around after your games. Or the ones who look at you when we walk across the quad together. I know what kind of girls you are used to being with. And I know what kind of things you are used to doing…" she trailed off.

"Oh really, you know that? You know everything right?" he shot out. He tensed up after hearing the words leave his mouth. He didn't want to fight with Haley. He wanted her to see the truth. "Haley," he said more gently, "I don't want to fight. But what you think you know…it's wrong."

"I have seen the pictures," she continued. "But can the pictures show you my heart, Haley?" he asked softly. "Can you see how my heart pounds when I hear your voice? Or how the best part of my day is when you walk into a room and I see your eyes searching for me, and then when our eyes meet. It feels like home to me, Haley. You know, if I had to list adjectives to describe you, pretty wouldn't be the first."

Haley's shoulders slumped slightly. "But not because you aren't gorgeous. But because you are so much more. Yes, I have had pretty girls throw themselves at me. But never once have I felt about one of those girls, the way I feel about you. This heart pounding, can't eat, can't sleep, only want to be with you, think about you every moment, dream about you every second, want to kiss you and talk to you, feeling. I can't shake it, and more than that, I don't want to. I want you. Like I said before, I want you. Not someone like you. Not someone else. Just you."

She felt the raindrop hit her head soundly. She looked up and suddenly the sky opened. They were nearly instantly soaked. He walked quickly towards her and grabbed her arm. "Come on, we'll get sick if we stay out," he urged, dragging her towards the car.

The car ride back to the Scotts' house seemed endless, even though she knew it was only a couple short blocks. They walked in the house, soaking to the skin from the heavy rain. Nathan led her towards the steps. He was starting to get a bit nervous. She hadn't said anything. Not a single sound. But he was glad he had said everything. He didn't ever want to hide how he felt from her. They climbed the stairs slowly. When they got to his room, which the girls had stayed in the night before, he opened the door. "Haley, go in and get a shower, and get changed. I will meet you in a little bit," he said gently, pushing her slightly in the door. He walked into his parents' room and got showered in their bathroom. He realized he had no clothes with him, and walked back to his room in a towel, knocking before he went in. He saw the door to the adjoining bathroom was still closed, and he quickly pulled on some boxer briefs, a tee shirt, and sweat pants.

Haley came out of the bathroom as he was pulling his sweats up, her hair damp wearing an oversized men's button up shirt. He recognized the shirt, and his chest puffed slightly at the thought of her going through his closet and selecting one of his shirts. "It looks good on you," he said. She blushed slightly. "I wanted something that smelled like you to sleep in last night," she whispered.

He patted the bed next to him. "Come here, we need to talk about this," he said. She walked over and sat next to him. "Haley," he started. "No, Nathan, I need to say some things," she said firmly, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I overreacted about the pictures. I'm sorry that I let myself over think and overanalyze every little thing. I'm sorry that I had a lousy boyfriend that I continually let get in my head. And most of all, I'm sorry that I was scared. And I don't want to be scared anymore," she finished.

He leaned into her gently kissing her lips. When she felt his lips meet hers, she felt all the passion he felt for her. She leaned into his mouth, licking at the outside of his mouth, encouraging him to open himself to her. She plunged her tongue into his mouth, licking at the inside of his mouth and massaging his tongue with hers. She moaned deeply, as her hands began running up and down his back, feeling the muscles ripple under the skin.

He pressed his mouth against hers again, this time exuding his dominance. He ran his hands up from her hips to her face, cupping her cheeks gently. He pulled back again, hearing her whimper gently, and stared at her face. "I could look at you forever. You are so beautiful. I'm sorry if I don't tell you enough, but you are. You are stunning, Haley James," he whispered before pressing gently kisses on her cheeks and lips. She could feel the blush rise. She closed her eyes gently, but he couldn't be deterred. He leaned down so his lips were next to her ear. "You are breathtakingly magnificent," he breathed, enjoying her shiver. "Nathan, just kiss me, please," she pleaded. She couldn't handle the compliments; she just wanted to feel him.

"Not yet," he whispered, rising to his feet, tugging on her hand so she would stand. He walked them over in front of the full-length mirror on the back of his closet door. He stood behind her with his arms around her middle, resting his cheek against hers. "Do you see what I see?" he asked. She met his eyes in the mirror, "I see a beautiful and sexy man with too much clothing on," she said. "Umm, thank you," he whispered pressing a kiss against her temple, "But how about the girl? Do you see?" "What do you want me to say, Nathan?" she asked.

"I don't want you to say anything. I'll tell you what I see. I see your hair. You have the most awesome hair. It is so soft and silky. I love when you are leaning against me and I can bury my face in it and smell you. Or when you are kissing me, and it brushes against my neck or down my chest. And then, there is your face. Your beautiful face. Your eyes are so expressive. I feel like I can see inside you when I stare into your brown eyes. And your mouth. You have the most amazing mouth. Your lips are so gentle and soft. Anytime they touch my body."

He could see she was breathing slightly quicker, but he pressed on, wanting her to feel how much he loved her and how beautiful she was. "Then, we have your neck. I love kissing this neck. Sliding my lips down it to your chest where I can feel your heart pound. And your breasts." He slid his hands up from her stomach to cup her breasts in both hands, before moving his hands up to the buttons and carefully unbuttoning enough buttons for her breasts to be exposed. She was breathing quickly now. She wanted to tell him to stop. She didn't want to stare at herself in the mirror naked, but the intensity in his eyes was unbelievable, and she could feel him hardening against her back.

His hands were cupping her naked breasts and gently squeezing them, as his thumbs circled closer to her nipples. He lowered his head towards her ear and whispered, "And your breasts. They are perfect. They fit in my hands like they were made for me. So full and soft. With pink, hard nipples. I like to flick them in my mouth. Do you like that, baby?" She nodded her head gently.

He gently released her breasts and moved his fingers back down to the buttons on the shirt, unbuttoning it to reveal her stomach and white cotton panties. "Then, your stomach. So smooth and soft. I like when I am kissing you and touching you, and I can feel the muscles quiver underneath your skin." He traced gentle patterns on her stomach, before dropping his hands further.

"And then we have…" his voice trailed slightly. Haley felt herself stop breathing. She wanted him to touch her so badly. But he wonderful fingers moved down to her thighs instead where he traced lines up and down. "Your thighs. So strong and muscular. I like when they are pressing against me, when your legs are around me." She was nodding jerkily now, leaning against him.

He stepped back slightly, holding her upright with his arms until she stood firmly, and then he sunk to his knees. "Now we have your knees. I feel like I haven't spent enough time here. Kissing them, so allow me," He pressed wet kisses against the backs of her knees, tickling the delicate flesh with his tongue. She moaned gently. He grinned against the skin, nipping at the insides, before pulling his face away. "Just as I imagined. Flawless. And your toes. I think you have beautiful feet. I like that you always have your toes painted. When we lay together, and our feet are resting against each other's, I love to see the difference between them. How big mine are compared how delicate and tiny yours are."

He rose to his feet, and once again wrapped his arms around her middle, resting his chin on her shoulder. "See how beautiful and sexy you are, Haley," he whispered.

She couldn't believe he stopped. She was standing here, totally aroused, with her shirt hanging off her, out of breath, and he stopped. She met his eyes in the mirror, "Babe, did you forget something?" He tried to bite the smirk back a bit. He was glad she was so into this. He was nervous that she wouldn't be, but she seemed to like when he called attention to her beauty, and now she was asking for even more.

"Hmm? Oh yeah, I forgot something else. I'll bet it's even a little moist right now," he teased. She groaned. She could feel how wet she was from his hands and mouth all over her skin. "Uh huh," she whispered. He ran his hand down her arm and grabbed her hand, raising it to his mouth. "Your hands." Her eyes shot open. No, not my hands, she thought. He continued, "I like holding hands with you. And I never liked it before. But yours are so small and gentle."

He pressed a kiss against her shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Your palms aren't moist though, Hales." She turned her face to look at him, and whispered, "I know, but you can find something else that is." Then she hurriedly kissed him on the mouth, frantically tangling their tongues together. He spun her around, and slid his hands down her back to cup her ass and hoist her up against him. They both groaned at the contact. He walked to the bed and laid her out. The shirt was open and had fallen back off her shoulders. She sat up and shrugged it off, flinging it off the bed. "Take yours off too," she growled, reaching out the stroke his stomach.

**Don't hate me! I will update again as soon as I can!**


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I know I know. I am terribly cruel to leave you all hanging like that, but I knew that I was half way through the next chapter, and so you would be getting an update today, so I felt justified!

Thank you again for the wonderful reviews. I have been writing this and only editing a bit, because I have felt the progression was natural, and so far, no one has said they thought things should be different or that the storyline is becoming repetitive.

I will say there is some serious Naley drama coming up. I hope the promise of some drama and more smut will keep you all excited enough to wait out the break in updating. As I said in the past several chapters, I am not totally sure if the delays will be super long. These chapters tend to come quickly for me, so you might be getting reviews every week, but I can't be sure! This kind of a thing isn't exactly something I could work on at school during my prep, if I want to keep my job! HA!

Anyway, read, review, and enjoy.

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She felt so sexy. Feeling him kiss her and touch her and talk about how much he loved her body and how good she felt and looked made her feel like she was on fire. And now she needed Nathan to help her put the fire out. She trailed her finger down his stomach again, ending at the hem and tugging roughly. "Take it off, I said," she repeated with a smirk. He reached behind his back, grabbing the shirt and yanking. His gorgeous body was revealed to her. Perfectly toned chest, cut abs, and that fine trail of dark hair leading below his belt.

He couldn't tear his eyes from her. She was so beautiful. Her dark hair was spilling over her shoulders. Her chest was heaving and her perfect breasts bouncing slightly from her heavy breathing. Her nipples were still hard from the mirror game he had played, and her lips were open slightly. He couldn't wait any longer. He lowered himself on her slowly, nestling his hips between her thighs and captured her lips with his, swallowing her moan.

This kiss was unlike any other they had ever experienced. In their months together, they had been both passionate and gentle, but this was uncontrolled and frantic. Their lips remained fused together as their tongues battled each other. His hands were roaming every inch of her exposed skin, stroking and pulling, rubbing and pinching at her, enjoying the different sounds that escaped her lips, moans and grunts and soft pants, mixed with mewling, pleading noises and then best of all, his name. He loved it when she moaned his name. When he made her come with his fingers, and she whined his name over and over as her hips thrust, he always felt like he would explode right then, even if he had already come.

Haley could feel her body tingling as his hands continued their dance over her skin. She wanted him everywhere, but there remained that tiny part of her that didn't want to have sex yet. She pulled her face away from his panting, and leant up and licked his lips gently. "Nathan," she breathed, clutching at his back with her hands. "Haley," he breathed back, peppering her face with tiny kisses. "I want this so much," she whispered. "Me too, baby," he replied in between the kisses. "But not sex, yet, okay," she said gently. She was a little worried that she had let things go too far, and now she was pulling back again, but she lowered her hand between his legs and stroked his cock gently to show him that she still wanted something.

He really didn't care. Sure, he wanted to bury himself inside her. As good as it felt to kiss her and have his tongue in her mouth, or his fingers in her wetness, he knew it would be unbelievable to be inside her, but he wanted her to want it fully. And touching her was pretty amazing too. He felt her hand stroking at him, and involuntarily he thrust against her hand gently, grunting. She knew his body so well. She was an eager learner. And she the way she asked him 'Does this feel good?' or 'Do you like it when I…' as she touched him turned him on even more.

He leaned down licking her neck and swirling his tongue just under her ear. This was her favorite spot. He smirked remembering the day last week that they had been laying in bed together watching TV, and he started sucking this spot. They hadn't been making out or anything, but her hips had begun rocking against his when he started tonguing that spot. No matter what she was doing, if he kissed her there, she reacted quickly. He whispered into her ear, "You taste so good. Does that feel good?" "Uh huh," she moaned, scraping her fingernails against his shoulders, while her other hand petted at his hard length.

Suddenly he had an idea. He continued licking at her special spot, and then whispered in her ear, "Baby, I love how good you taste. I want to taste you _everywhere_." She stiffened slightly, hearing his words. His tongue felt so good when he kissed her and licked at her nipples, but wasn't it a little bit gross to lick her _there_?

"Umm, Nathan," she whispered, trying to clear her mind from the fog of his tongue under her ear. "Sweetie, that feels really good, and you know what else feels really good? Your fingers. So you don't have to, you know…" she trailed off. "You know what feels really _really_ good? My fingers and my tongue," he said more insistently, biting gently under her ear. His mouth was salivating slightly thinking about what it would be like to lick at her thighs and feel them quiver in his mouth.

She couldn't stop the groan that escaped her mouth, as she thought about his tongue flicking her gently. "But honey, ummmmm," she broke off as he began sucking hard on the tiny patch of skin. Her hips ground against his, and she tightened her grip on him. "So good," she whispered. "Haley, I promise you will like it. If you hate it, I will stop immediately," he whispered. God, he wanted this even more than she did.

He pulled back and looked her face. Her brow was furrowed slightly. He raised his hand from her hip and gently smoothed the wrinkle on her forehead. "Haley, I want to do it. But if you don't like it, then it's not a big deal." She blushed a bit, and bit her bottom lip, "I don't know if I like it. No one ever…" she trailed off, biting at her lip again.

What an idiot I am, he thought to himself. Of course, that loser Dim never did it. He never made her come so why would I think that he would go down on her. "Hales, whatever you want. I am not pressuring you to do anything. But I just want you to know that I really want to," he whispered, pressing a gentle kiss against her mouth.

He was so freaking cute. Here he is begging me to let him go down on me, and I am hesitating, she thought to herself. Sure, it will be a little weird. She was happy she had just showered when they got home from the docks, but as wet as she was now, she knew that he would smell her. She tried to banish the thoughts from her head and think about his perfect tongue and how good it felt when he kissed her neck and licked below her ear. She gave him a tiny smile, and whispered, "Slow, just go slow."

He grinned like it was Christmas, his birthday and a basketball championship on one day. He lowered his face and began kissing her lips again, slowly moving his mouth down her neck to her chest. He moved his face to one nipple, and began sucking it gently. She cradled his head in her hands, holding him against her chest. "Umm," she whispered. His other hand moved to her other nipple tugging gently at the hard peak. He pulled his lips off her nipple, chuckling at the disappointed grunt she released, and pressed soft wet kisses between her breasts whispering, "That feels good, right? I love making you feel good. I like to kiss your breasts and nipples until you squirm. Are you feeling squirmy yet, Hales?" She giggled. Sometimes when he lavished attention on her breasts, the feelings got so overwhelming she felt like she had ants in her pants. She couldn't stop her hips from wiggling under him. He often teased her for squirming around and making it hard for him to hold on to her.

He moved his mouth to the other pink tip and began dragging his teeth over it. She hissed gently arching her neck. She ran her fingers through his hair. She loved his hair. It was so thick and soft and just the right length to bury her fingers in. When his other hand began flicking her nipple as his mouth sucked on the other, her hips began to quiver slightly under him. She could feel the wetness seeping out of her and dampening her panties. She felt his smirk against her nipple. She tugged his hair gently, so he raised his face and looked at her. "What are you laughing at, Sir?" she asked. "You're already getting squirmy. I can't wait to make you really squirm," he teased, and then lowered his face to lick her nipple one more time before licking down her stomach.

He paused at her belly button. Tracing it with his fingertips, he pressed a kiss to her belly, enjoying how her muscles tightened under his mouth. He brushed his face gently against her stomach, before licking a line from hipbone to hipbone and then blowing gently on the damp flesh. She couldn't stop her hips from wriggling. He laid his face on her stomach and lowered his hand gently over her center, avoiding anything but the lightest touch before landing on her thigh. She groaned lightly, and he turned his face and pressed a kiss to her belly, before continuing his stroking of her thighs.

He loved touching her. Feeling her body shake and quiver and tighten and relax under his mouth and tongue. With his face resting on her belly, he could smell her arousal. He forced himself to hold it together, and just continue his exploration of her, until she was really ready.

Oh god, she kept chanting in her head. She could feel his hands on her thighs, stroking gently, making her flesh jump at each contact. He was very very gently spreading her legs more and more, as his fingers rubbed and tickled at her thighs, moving from the outside of her thighs to the tops, and finally resting on the insides. She felt herself reflexively spreading more and more for him, willing his hands to move up closer to where she needed them.

Pressing another wet kiss to her belly, he lifted himself off her, and slid between her legs. She propped herself up on her elbows and looked down at him. She could see her chest heaving and her stomach quivering. Her legs were actually shaking with anticipation. Without moving his eyes from hers, he pressed a kiss against her mound. She could feel the heat of his breath through the damp cloth. He kept his face against her, and whispered, "You are so wet, Hales." She could only nod her head.

"I want to take these off," he said, hooking his thumbs around her panties. She nodded again more vigorously. If she weren't so hopelessly turned on, she would have freaked about the idea of being completely naked in front of Nathan for the first time, but in this moment, he could have done just about anything and she would have just nodded her head at him.

He pulled her panties down her thighs. He moved her one leg so her foot was flat on the bed, and then slid her foot through the hole of the panties. He leaned and pressed a kiss against her ankle, and then stretched the leg back out. He slid the panties off the other leg, letting his fingers trace down the entire length of the inside of her leg, before flinging them over his shoulder.

He settled himself back between her legs. She was still resting on her elbows watching him intently. He looked at her eyes and smiled, "So beautifully perfect." She blushed even deeper, the blush spreading down her neck to her chest. She couldn't believe her was saying her crotch was beautifully perfect. It looked like a crotch, right? she thought to herself.

He trailed his hand up her thigh and she held her breath expecting him to touch her, but instead the hand went up to trace the blushing skin on her chest. "Don't be embarrassed, baby. I want to do this. Do you know how good you smell right now?" She shook her head gently, biting her lip. "Really fucking good," he whispered, lowering his head to kiss her thigh.

She tossed her head back, and flung her arm over her eyes. Oh god, she started panting again. Her mind was racing between his perfect tongue licking at her thighs, and then him telling her she smelled really fucking good. "Oh my god," she whispered.

"Umm," he vibrated against her skin. He wanted to taste her, but he needed her to experience the whole thing. He could feel her hips rocking towards where he was kissing, trying to get him to move. He looked up at her, and saw her arm over her face. "Hales," he said. "Huh," she grunted. "Um, I like it when you watch me," he said, licking her thigh. "Oh fuck," she panted.

He grinned watching her move her arm and settle back on her elbows, her eyelids heavy. "I know it feels good, but I want you to watch how much I like it. Keep your eyes open," he encouraged. "Oh yeah, and you can talk to me. I won't be able to respond much because my mouth will be busy," he smirked. She moaned and bit her lip.

He lowered his face and kissed her lower lips gently. Her legs were spread wide, and he could see her internal lips glistening with her arousal. He loved how wet Haley got when they were together. He stretched out his tongue and licked at her, flicking his eyes up to watch her face, as his tongue contacted her clit for the first time. She moaned deeply, and bit at her lip again.

He smiled and continued licking her. Gently at first, like he was catching a drip from an ice cream cone. Then, as he felt her hips relax even more, he got a little greedier, sucking and licking like he wanted to eat the ice cream cone. She tasted better than ice cream. He pulled back slightly, "Does it feel good, baby?" "Oh fuck, so good, so fucking good, please don't stop," she babbled.

"Okay," he chuckled lowering his head again. He knew she was getting there. He could feel more and more moisture flowing out of her, and her thighs were clenching slightly. He traced a hand up her thigh and gently probed at her entrance. She was panting heavily, mixing her heavy breathing with various four-letter words.

She couldn't think clearly. She knew he had a talented tongue. But this was unreal. It felt so much better than his fingers and his fingers were pretty damn good. She felt his thick fingers moving at her entrance and she prayed that he would press inside her. Her prayers were answered. She felt two thick fingers pushing into her as his mouth suckled gently at her clit. She suddenly remembered how he said she should talk to him. "Nathan," she purred. "Hmm," he whispered, not moving his mouth from her clit. "This feels so good. I love it. I never knew it could feel like this. Your mouth is perfect. I like it when you suck like that, or when you flick your tongue quickly… Yup, just like that. You are making me feel so good right now. Can I have another finger, please?"

His cock was so hard right now. Tasting her sweet juices, feeling her hot little body wriggling under his mouth, and then listening to that voice ask for another finger. Sweet god, he thought, as he slid a third finger into her. She was so tight. He couldn't imagine how good it would feel to have that tightness wrapped around him. The thought made him want to come. He increased the pressure of his sucking on her clit and hooked his fingers gently inside her so he could stroke at her G-spot.

She shrieked. She tried to keep her voice down. The last thing she needed was Brooke or Lucas to come exploding in here, but holy shit, that felt good. "I like that thing with your fingers, do it again, please, baby," she begged.

He pressed into harder, and kept licking. He wanted her to come. He lifted his head just a little, so his lips still touched her and she could feel the vibrations of his speaking. "Come, Haley. I want you to come, watch me make you come with my mouth," he whispered, looking at her eyes. Her brown eyes shone with arousal, and he could see her struggling to keep her eyes open. He wanted to watch her face as she came, and he wanted her to see him do it. See how much he liked doing it.

She forced her eyes open, and trained them on his piercing blue ones. The sensations of his tongue on her hard clit and his fingers buried inside her stretching her were too much to bear. "Oh oh, Oh Nathan, I'm going to come. Please don't stop, don't stop," she whispered, thrusting her hips against his face. He kept his eyes focused on her hers, and sucked harder on her clit. He could feel her internal muscles pulsing and the slight gush of fluid from inside her. Her clit throbbed in his mouth, and her thighs clenched around his head, holding him in place. Her lips opened and formed a perfect O, and her perfect breasts heaved, her tight nipples bouncing. He never wished that he had another hand as much as in this moment, so he could cup both her perfect breasts and stroke them as she came.

He continued laving at her quivering center, enjoying the soft mewling noises she made, as her hips settled and her thigh fell open. He pulled his fingers out of her gently. She hissed feeling him leave her, and he pressed gentle kisses all over her swollen lips and down her still quivering thighs. He licked at the fluid that was spread all over her thighs and slowly moved his kisses up to her belly and finally suckled at each nipple before resting his head next to her on the pillow.

She rolled her head to the side, "Oh my god," she whispered. He smirked. She grinned weakly, "If I could move, I would kiss you all over, but I can't feel my legs." "Good, that means I did a good job," he whispered, nuzzling his face in her neck, and wrapping his arms around her, gently stroking her side. She kissed him gently, opening her mouth to accept his tongue. She could taste what she imagined to be herself on his lips, and instead of being grossed out, she was turned on a little. He had loved her so well and so intimately, and she wanted to be close to him again, in every way. After a few minutes of deep kisses, she rolled towards him, and snuggled her body against him.

She was suddenly very aware of her nakedness, as his hands ran down her back and cupped her naked butt. "I'm naked," she mumbled into his chest. "Yes, you are, and I am the luckiest guy in the world," he replied, squeezing her butt cheeks slightly. She lifted her head to look at him and said, "I mean, I am naked, and you aren't. Let's fix it," she said, pressing a kiss to his lips.

His mouth fell open slightly. "Hales, you said you weren't ready," he mumbled gently, as he felt her hands slid inside his sweatpants, grabbing his ass through his boxers. "I know, but there are other things we can do. I can't just leave you like this," she whispered seductively, moving one hand around to stroke his length through his boxers. "Uh huh," he breathed tightening his grip on her ass.

She struggled away, and tugged his pants down, flinging them over her shoulder. He lay back on the bed, snuggled into the pillows watching her. She was naked, leaning over him, her breasts swinging gently as she tugged and pulled at his sweats and then moved her hands to his boxers. A tiny part of him wanted to stop her, feeling like he didn't know if he could trust himself to be entirely naked with her. She felt so good and looked amazing, all swollen, and relaxed.

He lifted his hips slightly to allow her to tug his boxers off, flinging them in the direction of his sweats. She drew her breath in when she saw his erection free from his pants. Seeing Nathan completely naked was unbelievable. They had been in a various states of semi-nudity in the past weeks, but they had never been entirely naked until tonight. Seeing his cock, without boxers or anything else to detract attention from it was unbelievable. "Wow," she whispered. He felt himself blush slightly, "What, you have seen me before?" he stammered. She looked up at his face, getting ready to be embarrassed and then saw the slight blush across his cheeks. "Is Nathan Scott embarrassed? You, Mr. Confidence are embarrassed that your girlfriend is checking your package out?" she teased. He blushed deeper.

She leaned over and kissed his lips softly, tracing them with her tongue quickly before sliding her tongue in his mouth to tangle with his. She moved her face to his ear and bit the lobe before whispering, "You are…wait, what was it? So beautifully perfect," she purred into his ear. She pulled back to grin at him. He raised his hands to cup her cheeks, and smile before saying, "Thank you, now please touch me before I die."

She giggled, pressing another gentle kiss to his lips, and then slowly kissing down his neck. In the time they had been together, she had spent a lot of time touching his clothed body, her arms around him in a tight hug, snuggled in his lap while they watched TV, rubbing his shoulders or thigh distractedly while they talked. As her lips and tongue explored his chest, flicking at his nipples, biting gently at his sides, her fingers tracing the lines of his muscles, she realized that she hadn't spent enough time learning the top half of his body.

He willed himself to just stay calm. Feeling her little fingers stroking at him, followed by the warm wetness of her mouth, and then the trail of silky hair tickling his skin, he felt like he was going to burst. He could feel the precum beading on his cock, and he knew if he didn't start thinking about basketball statistics or something he would explode when he felt her hand on him.

He reached his cut lines and pressed hot wet kisses along them. She sat back on her haunches and looked at him. "You know, Nathan, you're not the only one who likes to be watched…." she breathed. " Fuck, Hales, I can't," he blew out shakily. "Why, baby? Don't like to watch me touching your sexy body?" she pouted. "No, I just want to be able to last," he admitted, reaching his hand out to touch her arm. She grabbed his hand and moved it over her breast, squeezing their hands around her soft mound.

He grunted at the contact, clenching his eyes closed. She was going to make this hard for him…no pun intended. "Haley, baby, please," he whimpered gently.

"Okay, you don't have to watch, if you don't want to. In fact, it might make it easier for me. I mean, I don't know if I could handle the pressure of having you watch me suck your cock," she purred, releasing her grip on his breast to lower her hand and begin stroking both of his thighs, running her fingers through the fine hair that grew there, and tracing gentle lines along the sensitive skin of his upper thighs.

He felt his cock pulsate. She was going to put it in her mouth. Stay cool, buddy, he thought to himself. Just relax, and keep it together. He had to watch. He had dreamt about her opening her perfect rosebud mouth and taking his throbbing head in and swirling it around. He had to see it. He forced his eyes open, and saw her staring at his face grinning. "I knew you wanted to watch," she whispered. She lowered her face and pressed wet kisses on his lower belly where the fine hair grew heavier. She lowered her face more and he drew in a sharp breath waiting, until he felt her licking gently at his thighs, biting and sucking softly.

She is teasing me, he thought. Doing exactly what I did to her. He groaned, "Baby, please. That feels good." She smiled against his skin. After the disastrous experience with Tim, she promised herself it was yet another thing she wouldn't try again, but with Nathan, she really wanted to do it. She wanted to feel him and touch him and make him feel good.

She raised her head and looked at his face. She could see a couple beads of sweat forming on his forehead and she knew he was having a hard time composing himself. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable. She leaned down and pressed an open mouthed kissed to the head of his cock, and then keeping her eyes on him, holding firmly to the base of his penis with her hand, she lowered her mouth around his head and sucked.

The first basketball game was held in 1892. In 1962, Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in one game. Michael Jordan has scored more points (5,987) in the playoffs than any other player in basketball history. He repeated facts he knew about basketball in his head as he felt the swollen head of his cock sucked into her mouth. However, when he felt her tongue flick against the sensitive underside he forgot everything he ever knew except how good her mouth felt. "Oh fuck, Haley," he panted. He moved his hands to her hair, tangling his fingers in her silky locks. He lowered one hand to her cheek, cupping it, feeling how open her mouth was around his girth.

She moaned gently around his cock, and he felt his hips thrust forward. She pulled back surprised, and he immediately whispered, "I'm sorry. I won't…" She grinned, and lowered her head, "I just thought I hurt you," and began sucking him again moaning against his cock so the vibrations increased. Her other hand pumped up and down his length. "Hurt me? God no, it feels unbelievable," he grunted. She pulled back again, hearing him swear at the loss of contact, and flicked her tongue against the underside of his cock as fast as she could. "Oh shit," he moaned, tightening his grip on her hair slightly.

She dived back on to his thickness, sucking hard. When she lowered her hand to his balls, cradling them gently and rolling them around she heard him swear again. She pulled her lips off his pulsing member with a pop, and lowered her mouth to suck each ball in, swirling her tongue around. "Oh god yes," he breathed again. As she released his balls and raised her head, she could see him struggling to hang on. She gripped his throbbing cock firmly in one hand and lowered her face, so her lips were around his cock but not touching it.

Raising her eyes, she looked at him and began to speak. As she spoke her lips and tongue brushed against his sensitive member, "I want to make you come, Nathan. Do you want that?" He nodded frantically, rubbing her hair gently.

She lowered her head, sucking and licking and flicking her tongue, while her hands pumped up and down his length. He felt the tingle in his balls, and he knew he couldn't last much longer. "Haley, I'm going to...," he whispered, and she began sucking more firmly. He wanted to pull her lips back, not sure, if she would want to swallow. He tugged lightly on her hair. "I am going to, I can't stop. If you don't want me to in your mouth, fuck," he breathed, hanging on the last shred of self-control he had. "Ummm," she moaned against his head, and lowered her face even further, taking more of him into her mouth. He couldn't stop it. His hips jerked slightly, and he felt the thick ropes of come shooting out of him into her mouth.

She kept sucking hard, as she felt him begin to pulsate in his mouth. The first shot surprised her slightly, but she held on and kept sucking. It didn't really taste good, but she liked knowing that she was making him feel good. She could feel his hands holding her head gently and when she felt his hips relax on the bed, she slowly pulled her lips off him, and wiped her mouth.

She looked down at his face and giggled gently. His eyes flickered open, and he couldn't control the lazy smile spreading on his face. "Holy shit Haley," he whispered, lifting his arms weakly so she could crawl up to him. She eagerly snuggled up to him, resting her head just under his chin. "I'm glad you liked it. I was nervous," she admitted. "You were the best," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her head. "Really?" she said excitedly. "Better than all the other girls?" "Hey, now, I am not a slut, Ms. James. There have not been _all _these other girls," he said pretending to be hurt. She grinned and kissed his chest. "I'm glad I did good," she said happily. "You did amazing. So, uh, I was good too right?" he whispered back.

She lifted her head smirking, "Yes, you were a stud, a stallion, and amazing orgasm giver." He leaned over and tickled her side slightly, causing her to giggle. "No really, Nathan, tonight was perfect, thank you," she said seriously after she could control her laughter. "You don't have to thank me, Haley, any time. And I do mean, any time," he replied.

She grinned and then yawned. He glanced at the clock and saw it was late. "We should sleep," he suggested. "Uh huh," she agreed, and rolled away from him. "Where are you going?" he whined. "To the bathroom, get under the covers and wait for me," she said, hopping off the bed. She walked into the bathroom shutting the door. She looked in the mirror. Taking in her crazy hair and swollen lips, she tried not to giggle. She forced a comb through the tangles and brushed her teeth quickly, and then walked back out of the bathroom. She saw Nathan standing by the bed holding a pair of boxers. She raised an eyebrow, "Getting dressed?" "I didn't know if you wanted to sleep totally naked, I just figured it might be a good idea to put something on," he babbled.

She grinned and grabbed the button up shirt from the floor. She buttoned only the three most middle buttons, leaving plenty of skin revealed and pranced over to the bed and climbed in. She saw Nathan still standing there watching her, completely naked holding the boxers. "Put them on and get in," she ordered, patting the bed. "But Hales, you have no underwear on," he whispered. She just giggled. He quickly yanked his boxers on and dove into the bed on top of her, kissing her passionately until they both fell asleep in each other's arms.

By the time Dan and Karen returned the next afternoon, the four kids had managed to drag themselves out of bed and avoid looking like they had spent the entire evening and night engaged in the kind of activities that no parents condone under their roofs. They spent that afternoon dyeing Easter eggs, and baking Easter cookies. Karen surprised the girls with Easter baskets just like the boys full of goodies to take back to school. The four college students ran all over the house and the yard searching for Easter eggs, and the boys even dove into the pool to find one that Dan had hidden. They had a big Easter dinner, and watched a couple old movies on TV. Monday morning they packed up Lucas' car, graciously accepted Karen's home cooked meal packaged in Tupperware, and headed back for college.

On the way home, Brooke rode in the front with Lucas leaving Haley and Nathan in the back, where they could snuggle together. "Nathan, I am really glad you brought me home to meet your parents. I really loved them," Haley said, pressing a kiss to the back of his hand. She silently added, almost as much as I love you. "Me too, Hales. I know they loved you," he replied, pulling her against him even tighter. As he pressed a kiss to her head, he thought to himself, yeah, they loved you nearly as much as I do.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Finally! I am back. I apologize for the hiatus, but back to school has been nuts for me. Lesson plans, and meetings, and everything. No time for writing. Here is the long awaited update, and I am hoping to get another chapter at least written this weekend to be posted soon. Like I said before there are probably only 4 or 5 more, so we are hitting the homestretch. I hope I haven't lost anyone in the break.

Also, I really enjoyed the first ep of season 7. Even though I am slightly tired of the whole groupie likes Nathan idea, at least we will see something for them this season.

Please read and review!

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"Nathan, seriously, just because our stuff is going home to the same place, doesn't mean I am going to pack your dirty freaking clothes with mine! Dad dropped off boxes for you too, so get your ass up and do it!" Lucas whined.

"Dude, you sound like an ass," Nathan bit out, without lifting his eyes from his laptop. "Well, if someone had done his final paper for Business class last week during finals, instead of making out with his girlfriend, then maybe he could be enjoying the final couple days of the semester by making out with his girlfriend now," Lucas teased, throwing a dirty sock in Nathan's direction. "Dude seriously, shut up," Nathan barked. He was nearly done this stupid paper. Thank God, his girlfriend was so smart. She had helped him when he realized that spending the couple of days he didn't have finals, not to mention Reading Day, lying on her bed watching her study wasn't the best use of his time. She helped him write an outline and even set up a schedule so that he would be able to finish. All that remained was the send it to her to proofread, and he could email to his professor.

He hated it when Lucas was right though. Haley had suggested that he get to the library, but he had just lay there watching her and daydreaming about her like a total fool, and then got behind. At least now that he was done, he would have a day and a half with her before moving out. Technically, they were supposed to leave after their last finals, but since they all had papers due the last day of finals, they had decided to stay until the last possible second to soak up couple time.

Nathan quickly clicked the save icon, and then sent the paper to Haley in an email. He sent her a text, knowing she was in the library for her final shift, and asked her to read his paper when she had a chance. He glanced over at Lucas who was carefully folding each tee shirt and laying them in a box labeled, "Tee Shirts, Solids." He snorted. Lucas looked up from his task and shrugged his shoulders, "What?" "You are such a freaking girl," Nathan smirked, as he began scooping up piles of clothes from his side of the floor and jamming them into boxes.

Just then, there was a knock at the door, Nathan dropped the box, which toppled over on its side and went to open it. His face broke into a wide smile when he saw that it was Haley. "Babe, I thought you were at the library," he breathed, as he pulled her close to him in a tight hug. She giggled and buried her face deeper in his neck, breathing in his smell, her toes just barely grazing the floor. She was a small girl, but when she was with Nathan, she felt even smaller. He was so strong, and he loved to sweep her off her feet, literally, in a tight hug.

Finally, he gently lowered her, so she could stand again, tugging her gently into the room. "I finished shelving the rest of the books, and I figured I would come over here to help you edit the paper. I got your message, as I was coming up the steps," she replied, sitting down at his desk chair. "I can edit the paper here, and keep you company while you pack," she continued, clicking around on his computer and opening the document he had been working on. She began reading through his paper carefully. Nathan was not stupid, but she got the impression his good looks and basketball skills had helped him slide through high school. He was quick to complete a task, but rarely edited. The first couple of pieces she had looked at for him, she had prepared notes, practically like mini-lessons on punctuation and run-on sentences. However, after a few attempts at explanations, she realized he did know what he was doing. She smiled as she continued reading through his paper; he had done a nice job on it. He had focused and it was obvious to her that he had spent some time thinking through his ideas and editing his final piece, rather than expecting her to clean it up.

She looked up at him, ready to congratulate him on a well-done paper, and ask permission to change a few words, and saw him jamming piles of clothing haphazardly into a box. "Nathan," she scolded, rising to her feet. "You can't pack like that, what's wrong with you?" "See," Lucas retorted triumphantly, "I told you!" Nathan flipped him off, and turned to Haley, "Babe, it doesn't matter. I am just going to give the boxes to my mom. She will just wash it all," he explained, jamming a couple pairs of clean socks into the corners of a box full of clothes.

She walked over to the box, and removed it gently from his hands. "Listen, I highlighted a couple spots and gave you some suggestions, why don't you fix it, and I will deal with this?" she asked. "Haley," Lucas whined, "That's not fair. I packed myself, why shouldn't he?" "Get your girlfriend to help you," Nathan barked back. He knew his mom wouldn't mind the piles of clothes, and he also knew that he could easily pack them well, but he loved the idea of Haley staying with him and helping him get ready to go home. Haley grinned at Nathan, "It's a good thing that you're cute, because you are helpless." She dumped the box over, spilling the contents back on the bed, and quickly began sorting the clothes into piles to be packed correctly. "I can't bear to watch this," Lucas stated, "I am going to go see Brooke. Haley, don't let him trick you into doing anything else for him," Lucas warned, "You are too nice for his own good." He walked to the door, ignoring Nathan's gestures directed at him, and shut it softly behind him.

"Finally, we're alone," Nathan said, crossing the distance to Haley in a few large steps, and pulling her into his arms. He pressed his lips against hers gently, tasting her mouth thoroughly before tickling her lips with his tongue, asking for entry. She opened her mouth to him, and slid her tongue into his mouth quickly, tangling them together. She tightened her grip around his neck. He slid his hands down to her ass, cupping it, and giving the cheeks a squeeze. He pulled her towards him even closer, lifting her up. She wrapped her legs around him, settling her thighs on his hips. She loved when he held her like this. After a few long moments, she pulled away slowly, and looked at his face. He grinned, "I loved holding you like this." "Me too," she replied, pressing a kiss to his neck. He held her relishing the feel of her body snuggled into him. Finally, she loosened the grip of her thighs around his waist, "Nathan, let's finish up and then we can make out," she murmured into her neck. He lowered her gently to the ground, pressing on more kiss against her lips. "Okay, but let's hurry," he agreed.

She giggled, as he quickly began adding her neatly folded piles of clothes to boxes and adding the full boxes to the pile, Lucas had started. An hour later, Nathan was rolling up his posters, as Haley stuck the last textbook in a box. "It looks so empty," she said softly, looking at the white cinderblock walls. "I know, I can't believe freshman year is done," he replied, as he pushed the box of textbooks towards the pile. "Thanks for helping me, Hales. I would still be jamming stuff into boxes, if you hadn't helped. Now, I hardly have to pack to come back in the fall," he said.

"No problem," she said softly, not making eye contact. "What's wrong?" he asked. "I'm just sad. A whole summer without you. I will be in California, and you will be here in North Carolina, and I am just really really going to miss you," she said, trying to blink back a couple hot tears.

"I'm going to miss you too, baby," he said, grasping her hand. She interlocked their fingers, and squeezed. "But I think I have a solution," he continued slowly. She looked up at him surprised. "What?" "Well, I mentioned it to my parents when we went out for dinner a couple weeks ago. Lucas and I want to ask you and Brooke to spend the first couple of weeks of the summer with us in Tree Hill. We have a beach house, and I figured we could just hang out on the beach, barbeque, kiss…." he trailed off with a smirk.

Haley's heart began pounding. A couple more weeks! At a beach house! "Nathan," she breathed. "Do you want to?" he asked hopefully. She didn't answer right away. All she could think was how excited she was. She was mentally running through all the things she wanted to do and all the phone calls she had to make home to get her life put on hold for another couple of weeks. She glanced at Nathan, and saw his face fall slightly. "Sorry, I just figured maybe you would want to hang out, but I mean, no big deal," he stammered.

She jumped into his lap, "Nathan, sorry, of course I want to! I am so excited! I was just thinking about how I have to call my mom, and my boss, and see if I can postpone my flight, and…" Nathan crushed his mouth against hers, silencing her rambles. After a passionate kiss, he pulled back, panting. Her mouth was still parted slightly, and her chest was heaving. He pressed his forehead to hers, "You were rambling," he murmured. "I am so excited, Nathan," she whispered.

Just then, the door exploded open and Brooke rushed in squawking, "Oh my God, Haley, are you so excited! A couple weeks at the beach! Don't worry I called my dad on the way over here and he is going to have his travel agent-person at his job fix our flights right now! Aren't you glad I made you buy those bikinis at the mall a couple weeks ago?"

Nathan shot Brooke a glare. She was always exploding in and interrupting a moment between him and Haley. Haley pressed a soft kiss against his cheek and stroked his back gently, as she and Brooke began chattering about the odds and ends that they would need to tie up back in California. She knew he got pissy when Brooke exploded into either room and interrupted them when they were talking or doing anything else. But Brooke was just so full of energy she couldn't be stopped. She could feel his muscles that had been tensed with frustration relax under her gentle touch, and she leaned into him further.

Lucas gestured towards the boxes that had doubled in size. "Hey Hales, you are a good packer," he said. "What about me?" Nathan asked feigning disappointed tone. "Yeah right, you would still be fooling around with those boxes if Haley hadn't helped," Lucas joked. Haley grinned, "He did a lot. He was a good little helper once I showed him how," she said soothingly, teasing Nathan. The group giggled slightly as Nathan nodded his head vigorously in agreement.

The next day they took Haley and Brooke's boxes to the storage unit where they would keep them until August, and spent the day planning out their two weeks at the beach. Haley and Brooke were able to get in touch with their parents and bosses and delay their return home.

"Haley," Nathan whined, "I don't understand why you don't want to stay with me tonight." "Because," she said firmly, "Brooke and I want our last night in our room together. When this year started, it was Brooke and me against the world. And I am so happy that you are in my life now, but my relationship with Brooke is important too, and lately we haven't spent much time together…" she trailed off.

"Haley, I am just whining. I know you and Brooke need your…what does she call it, Baley time?" he said quickly. "I just miss you, when you aren't with me. I can't sleep as well." She blushed slightly. She couldn't sleep as well without him either. She loved feeling his warm body next to her. He would press gentle kisses to her shoulder or the top of her head as he repositioned himself in the night. She knew that it wasn't comfortable for someone as tall as he was to sleep in one of those narrow beds, especially with another person, but he always wanted her to stay the night. She kissed him softly, before pulling back and saying, "Okay, you should go, so Brooke and I can get started on some Baley time. See you tomorrow morning!"

"See you," he whispered against her mouth, then rose slowly and walked to the open door. Brooke and Lucas were leaning against the wall outside their room, kissing. "God, get a room," Nathan muttered. "I wish," Lucas replied. Brooke giggled, and kissed his cheek, before swatting his behind. "Get out of here you two! See you tomorrow morning to start summer vacation!" The girls waved as the boys headed down the hall slowly. Brooke pulled the door closed, and leaned against it, staring at their room. Other than the bedding, which they were dropping off at the storage facility tomorrow, and their luggage that they were taking to Tree Hill, the room was empty. "It's so empty and white," she said. "Do you remember shopping for all the stuff we used to decorate this room?" she said. "God, we spent so much of your father's money!" Haley replied with a laugh. She turned and bent down to zip up one of her bags, and Brooke drew her breath in sharply.

"Haley Elizabeth Scott," she shrieked. "What!" Haley yelled back, jumping on to her bed. "Mouse? Bug?" "No, tattoo," Brooke yelled, pointing at Haley. Haley's mouth fell open, and she felt her cheeks getting hot. "Uhhh," she stammered. "Turn," Brooke commanded. Haley stepped down off the bed, and turned her back to Brooke. Brooke yanked her shirt up and tugged the waistband of her pants slightly to reveal a small, blue "23" on her lower back.

"Oh Hales," Brooke said. "What does he think?" "He doesn't know," Haley whispered, stepping away from Brooke. "What do you mean, he doesn't know?" Brooke said. "I mean, I did it like 2 weeks ago and I haven't shown him yet," she replied, still not facing Brooke. "But, how had he not seen it? Wait, you mean, you got his jersey number tattooed on your body, but you haven't had sex yet?" Brooke asked astonished. "Yes, I mean, no we haven't had sex," Haley muttered. "It's not a big deal, the tattoo I mean." "Yes, yes it is, Hales," Brooke replied, tugging her arm so she would turn around and face her. "A tattoo is permanent. It's a really big deal," Brooke said, "And you haven't even had sex. Why a tattoo?"

"Because I am in love with him," she blurted. Brooke grinned. "Oh Haley, I am so happy for you!" she squealed, pulling her into a hug. When Haley didn't hug back, Brooke leaned her head back so she could see Haley's face. "What?" "I just, I don't know if he loves me," she whispered.

"Of course he does!" Brooke replied. "Have you seen the way he looks at you? Or the way his voice sounds when he talks about you? Or how he looks at me if I dare to interrupt you two? He is head over heels in love." "I don't know. I mean, he hasn't said it," Haley continued. "Well neither have you," Brooke replied.

"You're right, I know, but I am just afraid that if I say it, he won't say it back, and God…" she trailed off. " He will say it," Brooke said. "So if you love him, why haven't you had sex?"

"Because I don't know if he loves me, because I am scared that it will be like with Tim again, because I'm just nervous. I mean Nathan Scott. He has had more sex than anyone I know, and what if I really do suck at it?" she worried. "Haley, he loves you, so it will be fine," Brooke soothed. "How can you be so sure?" Haley asked.

Brooke smiled genuinely, "It's easy. He looks at you the same way Lucas looks at me." Haley grinned. "I hope you are right…..I guess I should tell him. I mean, it's Nathan. He is so sweet and wonderful. And who doesn't want to hear that someone loves them? I'm going to tell him," she rambled. "Good!" Brooke replied, yanking her covers down on her bed. Haley climbed into her bed, and turned on her side to face Brooke.

"Ha ha, too slow, you have to get the light!" she squealed. Brooke stomped over and turned the light out, grumbling under her breath. She got into bed and turned on her side to face Haley. "So, once you tell him are you going to have sex?" Brooke asked. "I don't know, maybe, yes, I mean I want to and when we are together, and I am really into it, and then I just don't want to go any further. Maybe I will feel different once I hear him say it," she wondered aloud. "It's definitely different when you are in love, Hales. Trust me," Brooke said softly.

"God, all we did is talk about me," Haley said, "Talk to me about Lucas. You really love him don't you?" Even though the room was dark, Haley could still make out the smile on Brooke's face. "I love him so much, Hales. He is like the greatest person. He makes me feel so smart and beautiful. I don't know what I would do without him."

"I'm glad you're happy, Brooke," Haley murmured sleepily. "I'm glad we're both happy," Brooke replied, yawning. "Good night," they whispered in unison.

"Whoa," Haley breathed, as they stepped into the Scotts' beach house. The ride from school to Tree Hill had been fun with the foursome joking and laughing the whole way, but Haley was thankful to get out of the backseat of Lucas' car. When they had pulled up in front of the house, she was amazed at how large it was. The Scotts' home that they had stayed at for Easter was also large, but seeing another huge residence that was used purely for recreation made it even clearer to Haley how wealthy they were.

The house was bright and airy, with huge windows looking out on the beach. The boys dropped their luggage in the foyer and headed further into the house. Brooke smiled, "This reminds of me of the house my parents rent for vacation in Laguna every year, doesn't it?" Haley nodded. She often went away with Brooke's family for vacation over the summer. They walked into the kitchen and saw Lucas and Nathan digging through the cabinets and refrigerator. "Didn't waste any time, I see," Haley teased. The boys looked up sheepishly. Karen had stocked the home for them with tons of food and drinks. "Damn," Nathan said, "I was hoping there would be some beer here; I guess Mom isn't that cool." Lucas rolled his eyes, "Can you believe he actually asked Mom to get some beer and leave it for us?" Nathan shrugged.

"Okay, so let's do the rest of the tour," Nathan said, grabbing Haley's hand. They walked through the kitchen to the living room with the large flat screen television and various couches. He showed her the door to the patio that led to the Jacuzzi tub and the path to the beach. Finally, they headed upstairs. "Uh, here is my room," he said, showing her a large room with a queen sized bed. "You can stay in here, or there are guest rooms," he offered.

They hadn't really talked about the sleeping arrangements for the next couple of weeks. They often shared a bed at college, but never for two full weeks. He didn't want Haley to feel like he expected her to share his bed. "This is perfect, Nathan," she said, with a smile. "It will be great to have a big bed to stretch out in, after being crammed into those tiny twins at school." He grinned back, "I agree, even though I kind of like when you are all wrapped up around me."

Haley blushed, which only made Nathan grin harder. "Me too," she whispered. She walked over and stretched out on the bed. "Very comfy; come lay with me," she asked. He bounded over to the bed, pausing only to kick off his sneakers. He stretched himself out along side Haley, immediately wrapping his arms around her. She leaned her face up and kissed his lips gently, before sucking on the top lip. Her hands were buried in his hair, gently tugging and then massaging his head. Laying on the bed, with the breeze blowing in the open windows, the sound of the ocean in the background, she was so overcome with want for him. She rolled herself on top of Nathan, straddling his hips and sat up. With a timid smile, she slowly pulled her tee shirt up and off, flinging it behind her. She giggled as Nathan's eyes bugged out slightly.

His hands immediately flew to her back, tickling the soft flesh. "Hales," he stammered. "I want you; I missed you last night," she whispered, as she leaned down and began kissing his neck. She sat back up, this time running her hands up and under his shirt, bunching the fabric so she could kiss his chest and stomach. She scooted down slightly, so her face hovered above his stomach. She pressed hot open-mouthed kisses up and down his stomach, gently biting and licking his muscles. He groaned, tangling his fingers in her silky hair. Her hands moved to his belt and quickly undid the buckle and snap on his pants. She slid her hand into the fly of his shorts, and began stroking him.

His eyes rolled back in his head when he felt her hand wrap around his length. Over the past, couple weeks she had been more assertive when it came to fooling around. But this was even brazen for Haley. "Hales, that feels unbelievable," he grunted. "Good," she said, "Then this will feel even better." She lowered her face and sucked on the tip of his cock gently, still pumping the length with her hand. "Fuck," he grunted. She was so good at this, and more than anything, she was really into doing it. Blowjobs were great by nature, but with Haley, who seemed so eager and willing, it made it even better.

She pulled her lips off gently and continued pumping him quickly. "God, Nathan, you are so big," she murmured. His hips thrust gently against hers. "Sometimes I can't even believe that I can fit you in my mouth. So big," she said as she lowered her face again to take his length into her mouth. She didn't have a very strong gag reflex, but she usually concentrated on the tip. She kept lowering her mouth around him, taking slow deep breaths through her nose. Until finally her lips were lowered to the base of his cock. Her mouth was open really wide, and the soft fine hair that grew on his lower stomach tickled her nose. She groaned slightly.

"Holy fuck," he whispered. She had his cock all the way in her mouth. She had never done this before. She moaned again, the gentle vibrations ricocheting against his hardness. He could feel himself getting close, the tingling in his balls had started, and if she kept moaning like that, he couldn't stop himself. "Shit, Haley, you are amazing," he bit out, trying to relax and enjoy it for a moment longer. When he felt her head bob slightly so that the tip of his head was brushing the back of her throat he groaned deeply. "Oh god, I'm going to come," he whispered, as he ran his fingers through her hair.

She loved when he was like this. She could feel how tight and rigid his whole body was. Every muscle was contracted; she knew he was trying to hold off, but she wanted him to feel good. She loved knowing that she made him feel so good. She reached down and rubbed his balls gently, and he grunted hard, and then moaned her name softly, as he came. She sucked him softly until his body relaxed, and then she sat up, wiping her mouth, and curled her body against him. She stroked his chest and side gently, as his breathing returned to normal. "Nathan, you are so sexy," she whispered, snuggling into his side. He chuckled weakly. "You are so sexy, baby," he breathed. "Come here," he whispered more urgently.

He ran his hands over her breasts, feeling the hardened tips of her nipples. He quickly undid the clasp and let them fall into his hands. "You have the best breasts, Hales," he muttered, as he began laying kisses all over them, suckling the delicate skin gently, and finally capturing the nipples in his mouth. "Ummm," she whispered, holding his head against her.

His slightly calloused fingers tickled the soft skin of her thigh, and gently ran up and under her skirt to brush against her center. He could feel how damp the cotton between her legs was. He pulled off her nipple gently, and looked at her face. She was panting, and biting her lower lip. "Haley, you are so wet, baby," he whispered. She nodded, "I know." "Do you like sucking me?" he continued. "Uh huh," she breathed back. "You got this turned on, this wet?" he asked, as he continued petting her gently through the fabric. "Yesss," she moaned. "Hales, have you ever touched yourself before?" he asked.

She blushed. She was so turned on right now; she didn't want to talk about her. She wanted him to touch her. "Yes," she whispered, biting her lip again. "I want to see," he said gently. He took her hand, and brought it to her center.

He looked down at her. Her chest was heaving, and her nipples were hardened points. Her skirt was pulled up around her stomach, and her hand was between her legs. Slowly he saw her fingers move against herself on the fabric. "Let's feel how wet you are together, baby," he whispered, covering her hand with his, and gently nudging the fabric aside. Together their fingers brushed against her skin and delved into her wetness.

She moaned gently, feeling the first contact of their fingers. She hadn't really ever touched herself before Nathan. She had tried it one time, after Tim told her that it was her fault she couldn't come. But she had been so stressed about coming that she couldn't even enjoy it. Then, one night, after she and Nathan had been making out, she had gone back to her room, and done it. It wasn't nearly as wonderful as when Nathan touched her, but it certainly helped relieve the tension.

His large fingers with her slender ones stroked against her wetness, tickling her lips and nudging her clit. He drug her fingers down to her opening, and with one of hers and one of his, gently pushed inside her. "Do you feel how tight you are baby?" he whispered, in between kisses to her chest. He sucked her nipple into his mouth, as their fingers moved together in and out of her. His eyes locked with hers. He could feel her stomach quivering, and her thighs were shaking. He knew she was on edge. He wanted her to come. He kept sucking her hard nipples, dragging his teeth against them gently. Without removing his hand from inside her, he hooked his other arm underneath her, pulling her against him, and slid his other hand in her underwear. His fingers just barely could reach her clit and he began flicking it gently.

She was panting heavily. She couldn't draw in a full breath. Their fingers were pumping inside her, and his other hand was flicking against her clit. She twisted her body slightly, so that her back was against his chest, allowing him easier access to stroke her clit. He pushed their fingers deeper into her and sped up his stroking on her clit. He lowered his face to her ear. "Come on, baby, I want you to come. I want you to feel yourself come. It's so unbelievable. When your muscles clench. I love having my fingers inside you when you come, Haley. You keep getting wetter. I can barely stop myself from licking you right now," he whispered.

This is heaven, she kept telling herself. Their fingers tangled together pumping inside her, his index finger flicking her clit, and his sexy voice purring in her ear. When he began flicking his tongue under her earlobe, she lost it. Panting turned into soft moans, and her hips began thrusting erratically. "That's it, let it go, I have you. Come for me, Hales, come," he encouraged. Just as she could feel herself about to fall over the edge, she turned her face to look at him. There was so much love on his face she couldn't believe it. He was concentrating so hard, and he looked so happily in love. She felt herself split apart, and she came hard chanting his name over and over.

He slowed their strokes, but kept their fingers inside her until he felt her internal muscles release. He removed both of their hands from her panties. She was still staring at his face intently, her mouth open panting hard. He raised their fingers to his lips and gently sucked. He sucked his big thick fingers and her tiny slender ones, grunting greedily at her taste. "Umm, you taste good," he muttered.

She rolled over, so she was face to face with him. His arms wrapped around her immediately, and he pressed kisses to her face and neck. She needed to say it. It was bubbling up inside her. She loved him so much, and she wanted to tell him. Even if he wasn't ready to say it back, even if he didn't love her, she couldn't hold it in any more.

"Nathan," she whispered, staring into his eyes. "I---."

There was a knock at the door. Lucas called, "Hey Nate, Peyton, and Jake are here to meet the girls. Get decent and come down." Nathan groaned and buried his head in her neck. Haley bit her lip. "How rude would it be to just stay up here?" Nathan asked. "Pretty rude," she murmured gently, even though every piece of her wanted nothing more than to just lay here with him, who cares about meeting Peyton and Jake. "Ugh, let's get dressed and go down. The faster we get down there, the faster we are done being polite and the faster, I can get you undressed again," he whispered. He kissed her sweetly, and then climbed out of the bed, leaving her laying there. He walked into the bathroom to freshen up, and left Haley to get dressed.

After he came out, face washed, hair combed, she went in to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror. She loved the way she looked after she was with Nathan. She always looked so relaxed and happy. And in love. "I love you," she whispered barely audibly. She grinned as she heard the words. She would tell him. Tonight, after they met his friends, when they came back up and got into bed, she would tell him.

They walked downstairs hand in hand, and were greeted by a nervous looking Lucas and pissed off Brooke. "Hales," Brooke bit out angrily, reaching for her arm. "What, Brooke, don't kill my good mood," Haley teased, and brushed off her hand. She kept walking into the kitchen. "I'm thirsty," she said. "Wait, Haley," Brooke called out. Haley kept walking and entered the kitchen. She saw a curly headed blond, and a brown haired boy sitting at the island in the kitchen. "Hi, I'm Haley, Nathan's girlfriend," she said, as she walked over to the fridge. "How are you? I have heard a lot about you from Nathan and Luke."

Brooke tapped her foot angrily, "Hales, let's talk in the other room, okay," she said. "Brooke, stop being a weirdo," Haley teased, "You are going to freak out Peyton and Jake." Just then, the sliding door from the deck opened, and all six heads turned to see who was coming in.

The bottle of water slipped from Haley's hand and fell to the floor spilling the contents on the tile. "Tim," she breathed. "Tim?" Nathan said angrily. "Tim," said Peyton, Lucas, and Brooke in unison. Tim grinned, "Hey Hales, long time no see."


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: *looks around, holding head in shame* I know, I am evil. Sorry for the insanely long delay in updating. I only hope that you are all still around and interested. Life just got in the way. Nothing massive, just work and friends, and all the sudden it was months since I updated.

Here is the next installment. Hope you like it. I would like to promise an immediate update, but I can't make promises I am not sure I will keep. But be assured I am not quitting on this story. I think there should be about three more chapters and an epilogue. My goal is to wrap it up around Christmas. Hope you are all well and don't hate me too much!!!!

Please review!!!

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_Just then, the sliding door from the deck opened, and all six heads turned to see who was coming in. The bottle of water slipped from Haley's hand and fell to the floor spilling the contents on the tile. "Tim," she breathed. "Tim?" Nathan said angrily. "Tim," said Peyton, Lucas, and Brooke in unison. Tim grinned, "Hey Hales, long time no see."_

Brooke walked over to Haley. "Come on, let's go," she urged, tugging on her arm. Haley just stood there staring at her ex-boyfriend. She hated that dumb grin. Suddenly she realized that her feet were wet; she looked down and saw the puddle on the tile. "Shit," she bit out, reaching for a dishtowel on the counter. "Don't worry about it, Haley," Lucas said weakly. Peyton nodded, "So, uh, everyone, this is our friend Tim from school."

Suddenly everything started making sense. She knew that Nathan and Lucas were good friends with Peyton and Jake from high school and that they were at school in Savannah ….where Tim went to the Savannah School of Art and Design. She never put it together that they were at the same school, even though Lucas had mentioned that Peyton was a talented artist and that Jake was interested in designing furniture and large scale city sculptures.

Haley nodded her head, "Well, we already know him, small world huh," she murmured weakly. Tim strode towards her, holding his arms out, "Come on give me a hug! It's been a while!" Nathan immediately stepped in front of her, his fists clenched at his sides, "Think again, man."

Tim backed up, hands up in front of him, "Whoa man, no worries. Haley and I just go, uh, way back," he smirked. Brooke rolled her eyes. "Dude, he could crush you with one hand. Back off and stop being an asshole, oh wait, can't turn that off."

"Oooh Brooke, still pleasant as always," Tim said, as he walked back over to stand beside Peyton and Jake. "Bite me, Dim," Brooke bit out. Lucas held up his hands, "Okay, okay, why don't we just plan to see you all later or something, I mean…"

Haley shook her head. "No guys, no big deal. I was just surprised. I, uh, am going to get change my pants. I spilled water on them, be right back," she rambled, turning to leave. "Hah, Hales, you always were a klutz," Tim jabbed, as he climbed up on to a stool at the island, "Hurry back."

Haley quickly dashed from the room. Nathan started after her, but Brooke held up her hand, stopping him, and took off after Haley. She knew that Haley would be freaking out, and she didn't need Nathan right now; she needed her best friend.

When Brooke walked into the bedroom, Haley was sitting on the bed with her back to the door. "Hales," Brooke said gently. As soon as she heard her best friend's voice, Haley felt the first tear roll down her cheek. She ground her hand against her face roughly, trying to wipe away the moisture.

"Hales, don't cry," Brooke whispered. She remembered how terrible it had been with Haley last summer, when she and Tim had broken up, and then even with Nathan in the beginning, how scared and vulnerable she had been. She didn't want to see her best friend hurt again. "Oh Brooke," Haley cried softly. Brooke sat down next to her and gently rubbed her back. "Hales, please, it's okay. Listen, I will just go down and tell Lucas to get that asshole out of here."

"And what," Haley looked up at her, with her mouth open slightly, as she gasped for breath, "And then he knows how much he hurt me? And then, he wins again? And then Nathan wonders why I can't just get over it? No, Brooke, I have to just get it together."

Brooke shook her head. Haley was always the martyr. "Listen, Hales, I don't even want to look at his dumb face. I will tell Lucas it's because of me." "No really, Brooke, I will be fine. He just better not talk to me," Haley said firmly. "I will make sure of it. And the look on Nathan's face tells me that he isn't planning on leaving you alone too much," Brooke continued.

A soft knock at the door interrupted their conversation. Haley called, "Come in." Peyton popped her head in the door. "Listen, I am sorry. I had no idea you had any history or whatever that was. Jake and Tim met this summer because they were partners in one of their classes, and so he is hanging with us for a couple weeks until his summer internship starts up in Savannah. I am really sorry. We can make ourselves scarce though."

"No, don't worry," Haley said, wiping at her face. "We dated in high school, and when it ended it was kind of….." "A train wreck," Brooke supplied. Haley laughed weakly, "That is true. It was pretty bad. But I am getting over it. I mean, I am with Nathan, and he is so…." she trailed off as a sweet smile crossed her face. Peyton and Brooke smiled. "And so, I am fine. It was just a shock. I didn't expect to see him again….well, ever really," she said with a shrug. "But it's fine. I'm fine."

Brooke gestured between the three girls, "We're all fine." Peyton exhaled slowly. "Good. Lucas had written some emails, talking about how great you two were, and you would have to be blind not to see the way they look at you, so I am glad that we can still all be friends."

Brooke looked out the window, "Ooh, look, the clouds are coming in, looks like a storm." Peyton stood and went to the window, "Yup looks like one is coming in; this should be interesting." They heard some raised voices from downstairs, and then the sound of furniture being shoved around. Haley shook her head at the girls headed quickly for the door, "Should be interesting."

"Step back, man," Jake warned Tim, who was in Nathan's face. Lucas was struggling to hold Nathan back. "Nathan," Lucas said gently, "Just relax, bro."

"Nathan," Haley said firmly. Hearing her voice, he turned his head to look at her. Tim, using what little sense he had, walked quickly to the door. Looking at Jake, he said, "Listen man, I am going to walk up the beach back to your house. Hopefully everyone here can chill, and I will see you all later." The door slammed shut as he headed out.

Lucas released Nathan's arms, and he walked over to Haley and wrapped them around her. "Baby," he whispered softly. She rubbed her face in his chest, breathing in his smell and feeling the warmth of his body surround her. She looked up at his face and saw the concern. "I'm fine," she said, smiling gently. "We'll talk later," she added as she stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his lips.

She looked over her shoulder at Jake and Peyton. Jake smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, Haley. I didn't know about you and Tim. But, um, I am really glad to meet you. And I hope we are cool." She shrugged, "I would question your taste in friends, but Lucas and Nathan are pretty great, and I like Peyton, so I guess I can forgive you one bad choice."

The group laughed softly, happy that tension was broken. "So, listen, I will just hang with him at my house tonight, and you guys can stay up here," he offered. "Nah, it's cool," Haley said dismissing the idea. "I want us to be friends, and as long as Killer here," gesturing to Nathan, "can relax, we're fine."

Nathan blushed slightly. He didn't want to tell Haley that Tim had made some offhand comment about her having trouble finding something suitable to wear, and it had rubbed him the wrong way so he dove at him. Haley was sensitive, and she didn't need to know that Tim had insulted her in a backwards way. He couldn't believe that guy. Nathan knew he wasn't huge, but he easily outweighed Tim. What could the dude possibly be thinking to start with Nathan? He had no clue who he was messing with. "I am cool," he said softly.

Lucas elbowed him in the ribs, "I don't think you'll ever be cool, but you can at least control yourself for tonight right? I had sent out an email to people from high school, and a ton of them are headed over here for a Welcome Home/Summer Vacation party tonight."

Brooke squealed and clapped her hands. "I love parties. They fix everything!" Nathan looked down at Haley, and smiled gently, "There's nothing to fix, right Hales?" Haley nodded and stepped into his embrace. She glanced out the window at the dark clouds over the ocean. "Right."

***************************

Haley laughed, looking at the group of boys playing Flip Cup in the kitchen. None of the four of them had really drank that must in the past couple months of school, opting to spend time doing couple of things, but the whole gang was really letting loose at this party. Haley had met all of Nathan and Lucas' friends from high school, and she was really enjoying herself. She had seen Tim briefly, when Peyton, Jake, and he had returned from Jake's house for the party. They had greeted each other coolly and then Haley spent the rest of the evening keeping her distance.

Nathan pumped his fist in the air as his team won. Lucas flung the red plastic cup onto the table and grimaced. Nathan was a serious drinker. Nathan clapped him on the back, and smirked, "Still can't beat the master!" Haley grinned. She felt silly being proud of him for being able to out drink his brother, but there was something so intensely male and sexy about him when he was competing at anything that she was able to momentarily forget the lousy afternoon they had once Tim's presence had been announced.

Nathan strode towards Haley and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her up against his body. He normally didn't engage in much PDA, as much to keep his life private as to avoid getting caught up in the moment and pushing a bit too far with Haley. But he was feeling a little buzzed and couldn't help himself from pressing his lips to hers. He wanted every guy in the room to know that this amazingly sexy girl was with him. And he just loved kissing her. He was slightly surprised when she opened her mouth to him, darting her silky tongue out to flick at his lips.

"Hales," he whispered against her open mouth. He dropped his nearly empty cup on the table and practically dragging her from the room. She giggled and wrapped her arm tightly around his waist. He was holding on so tightly her toes were practically grazing the floor. He swung her out a side door off the living room on to the driveway. Haley looked around, pleased to see there was no one else there. This house was so large and there were so many possible exits, no one seemed to have found this one yet. Nathan slid his hands up her arms to cup her cheeks. He rubbed his thumbs over her cheekbones and stared into her eyes. She was so beautiful.

Haley could feel her skin tingle as his hands brushed up her exposed arms. The air was cool coming off the ocean, and she felt the goose bumps forming, unsure if they were from the sudden change in the temperature or the gentle stroking of her skin. His piercing blue eyes stared into her; she could see he was a little buzzed from the way his eyes were a little blurry. He grinned gently and leaned into her kissing her mouth softly. She stood up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around him, opening her mouth to him. She knew that Tim's presence wasn't just affecting her, and she wanted to show Nathan how much she was invested in what they had.

He tightened his grip around her waist, splaying his fingers and pressing her more firmly up against him as he continued licking at her mouth. Finally, he broke the kiss panting, moving his face into her neck, breathing her in. He realized he was drunker than he thought, and he tried to get a hold of himself. He hadn't planned on drinking much before Tim's arrival. He wanted to say hi to his friends and then sneak off to his room with Haley and pick up where they had left off earlier this afternoon, but then when Tim had arrived and she had been so quiet for the rest of the afternoon, he had made up for his feelings of nervousness and insecurity by challenging Luke to a drinking contest he was sure he could win.

Haley felt his body sway slightly. She loosened her grip on him, and pulled back so he would look at her. "Baby," she breathed, smoothing his hair back, and stroking his cheek, "You are drunk." "Maybe," he admitted sheepishly. "I like you drunk," she whispered, smiling slightly. "Oh yeah?" he asked, stroking at exposed skin on her back where her topped had ridden up.

"Uh huh," she whispered, "I want to take care of you, make you feel good." He smirked, "I like that idea!" "So, uh, let's," Haley started, as they heard a crash from inside the house and Lucas swearing. "Damn it," Nathan bit out, and started to move towards the house.

Haley gulped deeply, trying to shake off the haze of arousal and followed Nathan into the house. Brooke was haphazardly sweeping up a broken vase, and Lucas was across the room talking firmly to several rather drunk and sheepish looking guys that Haley remembered meeting early in the evening. Nathan quickly headed over to Lucas, and Haley joined Brooke. "What happened?" she asked. Brooke looked up at and her and Haley could immediately see that she was pretty wasted. "Uh, well, it looks like we missed something when we were party proofing the house earlier," Brooke giggled as she continued stirring up the mess of broken glass shards on the floor. "Here, let me," Haley said, taking the broom from Brooke. "Why don't you go and grab a paper bag from the kitchen? Paper, Brooke, not plastic," she said gently. She knelt by the pile of glass and swept it efficiently into a pile and then began using the dust brush to collect it in the dustpan. Brooke returned with a tiny lunch bag. "Brooke," Haley whined. "You said paper," Brooke offered weakly. "Fine, just go," Haley blew out, looking up to smile at Brooke. Brooke might be a great help when she was sober, but once she had had a few drinks, she was fairly useless. Brooke beamed and kissed the top of her head, skipping off to a group of people who appeared to be beginning some type of a card game.

Just as Haley had finished scooping the remaining bit of glass into the bag, she began pushing herself up to her feet. As she pressed her palm into the floor, she felt a piece of glass dig into her palm. "Shit," she bit out. "Let me help, Hales," Tim said softly, grabbing for her hand. "No," she retorted, yanking her now bleeding hand from his. "Come on, don't be a baby. No one else is around, and you need help getting it cleaned up," he argued. She headed towards the kitchen with Tim hot on her heels, and saw that the boys were in the midst of some type of chugging contest by the sink. She turned, nearly running into Tim.

"Leave. Me. Alone," she muttered, brushing past him to head upstairs. She reached the room that she and Nathan were staying in, smiling gently to herself remembering this afternoon, before all the grossness of Dim's return. She walked into the bathroom, and began running the water. Plunging her hand underneath the tap, she swore gently under her breath at the sting, and pulled her hand out to try to see the glass. "It would be easier, if you let me help," Tim murmured softly, coming over to lean against the vanity.

"I think I would rather amputate," she said, staring at him icily. He rolled his eyes, "Fine, have it your way." She looked back down at her hand, realizing that she couldn't hold open the tiny wound and dig around in the cut with tweezers with only one hand, "Wait," she whispered.

"Ha! I knew it! Couldn't resist some Tim time!" he smirked. She began to turn away, and he caught her face in his hand, "Wait, sorry, I'll be good," he whispered. "Just help me get the glass out," she replied. He began rummaging through the cabinet pulling out peroxide, gauze, tweezers, and a Band-Aid, as Haley kept her hand under the faucet.

"So, you and Nathan," Tim said gently. "Yup," she said proudly. "Well, I am not surprised," Tim said. Wait could he actually be being nice to me? Haley wondered to herself. "Oh?" she said noncommittally.

"Well yeah, Nathan is one hell of a basketball player from what I hear from Jake," Tim said, as he began applying rubbing alcohol to the tips of the tweezers. "What does that have to do with anything?" Haley said. "Well he wants to get drafted right?" Tim added, "This might sting." He poured some peroxide directly on the wound. "Shit, damn, bastard," Haley swore.

Tim chuckled softly under his breath. "Well, yeah, I guess he does," Haley added. "So he needs a sweet, good girl who doesn't get him in to trouble, all American girl next door, meets future June Cleaver. You fit the bill perfectly," Tim said, keeping his tone light and friendly.

"Don't be ridiculous," Haley retorted, rolling her eyes. "We have hardly been dating for that long, we are totally not thinking about marriage." She hoped her voice didn't betray the occasional thoughts that ran through her mind of how much she loved the idea of being Mrs. Nathan Scott. Duh, she was only 19, but she could fantasize….

"Right, and he wants to have a good reputation now as he gets closer to the draft, to erase any of the partying trouble he had before. Has he taken you to any parties, Hales? Have you been wild, college students together?" he said, as he continued to squeeze at her hand, trying to get the piece of glass.

"Well, no, but he is just done with that part of his life. He said he grew out of it. He would rather…" "Sit home with you and not have sex?" Tim finished, "What 19 year old guy doesn't want to be out drinking with his friends, hooking up with hot girls who are offering him way more than you would? Hales, look, no offense, but snuggling up watching The Notebook isn't exactly most guys' dream."

Haley willed herself not to flush and let on to Tim that his words were affecting her. "So you expect me to believe that the only reason Nathan is with me is because he wants to have this good reputation in case he gets drafted?" "Well that and I am guessing you are keeping him on the hook with sex, right? I mean, you haven't done it yet? You are probably making him wait, like you did with me, because no offense, if you had slept with him, he wouldn't still be around. You have a pretty hot body, Hales, but you have no idea what to do with it." Tim finished callously.

"Listen," he said softly, looking up to her eyes, "I am not trying to hurt you, I was just trying to let you know that you aren't that girl, Haley. You aren't the girl that successful talented, "quote unquote hotties" go for. Have you seen the girls downstairs throwing themselves at him? Once he gets the great reputation of Nathan Scott, good guy, loyal, dependable, trustworthy, and the quality teams start sniffing around, you will be last week's news. And who knows he might even have a piece on the side to get what he isn't getting well enough from you." Tim dropped his face to her hand again.

Haley kept her eyes wide, so that the sheen of tears that coated them wouldn't fall. "It's not true," she muttered, disappointed at how sad her voice sounded. "Whatever you say, aha! Got it," Tim said, extracting the tiny piece of shiny glass from her palm. He cleaned her palm again with the peroxide looking up at her face to see if it stung. She didn't move a muscle. He gently patted the area dry and placed a Band-Aid on her wounded hand. "There you go, as good as new. It's funny how one tiny thing can cause so much pain." He grabbed his cup and headed out the door. He glanced over his shoulder at Haley and smirked, "Bet you're wondering if you should have taken my suggestions about the sex lessons."

Haley pivoted on her heel as he walked out of the bathroom and headed out of the bedroom. She stared at her face in the mirror. She wasn't gorgeous, but she wasn't hideous either. Tim was full of it. Nathan cared about her. And he seemed to be satisfied with her when it came to physical stuff. She wiped at her eyes and took a couple deep breaths. Her Nathan cared. He wasn't interested in anyone else.

She walked downstairs to the party, noticing that the crowd had gotten slightly smaller since she headed upstairs. She saw Brooke and Lucas making out on one of the Lazy Boy's in the corner. She scanned the room for Nathan, and finally saw his back. She grinned and headed over to him, just as another girl came darting out from the side squealing his name. He turned, grinned, and grabbed her, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist and swinging her around. She pulled back and stared at him, grinning. The girl from the picture. This was the gorgeous girl that Nathan had taken to his prom. She laughed at something, and he groaned gently and buried his face in her neck, while she ran her fingers softly on the hair on the back of his head.

Haley could feel the hot tears welling up in her eyes. The girl that Nathan was holding saw her, and said something to him, causing him to turn towards her. He gently lowered the beauty in his arms and bit his lip nervously before walking over towards Haley. Haley turned quickly on her heel heading outside. Nathan followed right behind her.

She spun to face him, and couldn't stop the hot tears from rolling down her face. "Hales," Nathan said confused, "What's wrong? Where have you been? I have been looking for you." Haley chuckled bitterly, "Well, last time I checked I am neither tall nor a red head, so it seems you weren't looking that hard."

"Hey," he said gently, "It's not a big deal. We're just friends." WHAT? Haley's inner voice screamed. Just friends?! Does someone who is just friends swallow your semen? I think not, she thought angrily to herself. How dare he say that they were just friends. "Oh really, just friends, just friends," she bit out angrily.

"Yeah," Nathan said defensively, "Just friends." "I can't believe Tim was right," Haley murmured. "Tim?!" Nathan growled. "Yeah, Tim, he was so right about you," she retorted. "When the fuck were you talking to Tim?" he bit out, grabbing her elbow, to pull her body close to him. "First of all, don't curse at me. Second, I'll talk to whomever I want. Third, screw you," she yelled, turning to head in the house.

"Don't walk away from me, Haley. It's a huge mistake," Nathan yelled back. "Oh yeah, because you are such a great guy?! You know what, don't talk to me," she yelled, as she stomped in the house.

Nathan started after her, but then felt like he was going to be sick. He stumbled a few feet out on to the beach before dropping to his knees and puking.

Haley rushed up the stairs, relieved to hear footsteps behind her. Maybe she was overreacting. At least he was following her. She marched into the bedroom, and flopped face first onto the bed. She felt the bed shift slightly and a hand rub her back. "Nathan, I'm sorry," she started, rolling over to see Tim sitting next to her. "What?" she stammered, as he leaned down and kissed her hard. She started to push him off her, when Brooke came exploding in and smacked him, screaming, "Get off!"

Lucas followed, and before Haley realized what was going on, Lucas had flung Tim up against a wall and shouted, "Get out now, man, before this gets really bad." Tim held his hands up and staggered out of the room. Jake, who had arrived after hearing Brooke shouting, angrily shouted after him, "And you are leaving tomorrow!"

Haley felt Brooke's arms around her. Her head was spinning. The whole day was such a blur. Between almost confessing her love to Nathan, then seeing Tim, then Tim telling her Nathan was only using her, then fighting with Nathan, and now this most recent attack by Tim. She suddenly felt overwhelmingly tired. "Brooke," she whispered, "Yeah honey?" Brooke replied, brushing Haley's hair back from her face. "I want to go home."

"Tomorrow, we'll go tomorrow. I'm so sorry, Hales," Brooke started. Haley silenced her with a quick squeeze on her hand. "Don't. I can't. I just want to go." Brooke stood and said, "I'll go get Nathan."

"No!" Haley shouted. "I don't want him. He doesn't want me. We're over. He didn't come for me." Brooke looked at Haley, confused, "What?" Haley exhaled deeply. "Don't worry about it now. I can't talk about him. Help me gather my stuff. I am leaving first thing tomorrow." Brooke glanced at Lucas, who smiled tightly and backed out of the room to give them space. Brooke closed the door and turned the lock, and began helping Haley shove her belongings back into her bag.

********

"Fuuuuuck," Nathan breathed. He rolled over reaching his arms out feeling for Haley and felt nothing. He pushed himself up and blinked his eyes. The bright sun was blinding, and all he could see was the ocean. The ocean? He blinked again. He was sleeping on the porch on a lounge chair. He slowly staggered to his feet, scrubbing his hands at his face. Bits and pieces of the night began washing back over him. He remembered drinking a lot with Lucas, Rachel, and then fighting with Haley. He glanced down at his shirt and swallowed thickly in disgust and embarrassment that he did in fact vomit and it appeared he wiped his mouth on his shirt. First order of business, drink water; second, shower; third, find Haley and beg for her forgiveness.

After pounding a sports bottle of water and weakly surveying the damage to the house, he wandered upstairs to the bathroom and quickly showered. The water in and on his body helped to make him feel a little more human. He headed over to his bedroom and knocked gently on the door. It creaked open, and he peaked inside. Nothing. No Haley, no luggage, just a messy bed.

Suddenly he felt a slap to the back of his head. "Oww," he whined, turning to face Lucas. "You are an asshole. A huge fucking loser asshole," Lucas bit out angrily. "What the hell?" Nathan muttered trailing behind Lucas as he headed downstairs. "What's going on? Where are the girls?" "Dude, you fucked up so big last night that you might not be able to fix it. Haley left. After your fight last night, she came up here and Tim tried to force himself on her, and…"

"What?!" Nathan roared. He could only see red. He wanted to rip Tim limb from limb. How dare he. His fists were clenched at his side. "Where. is. he?" Nathan bit out in a low careful voice. "Dude, Jake and I took care of it, because you weren't here. From the sounds of Haley's story, you were off with Rachel. Dude, I can't even believe.."

For the second time in the past two minutes, Nathan roared again, "Are you kidding? After we argued I passed out, not before I puked all over. I was about to follow her, but I felt sick, and, I can't believe this. Did they go back to school?"

"No, man, they left. I drove them to airport this morning," Lucas said carefully. "Oh God," Nathan moaned, "I don't know how this happened. I mean I was drinking, but I never touched Rachel. In fact, I was telling Rachel about Haley, and how amazing she is and she was teasing me for finally falling in love. I wanted Haley to meet Rachel. How the hell did this happen? She must hate me."

"I don't think she hates you, but she sure doesn't like you. Brooke said to tell you to stay away, or else. And listen man, Brooke isn't someone to mess with. I think you should just kind of lay low, for a bit and let her cool down," Lucas trailed off.

Nathan had sunk into the couch, his elbows on his knees holding his face in his hands. He couldn't think; he couldn't breathe. Haley. His Haley. He needed her so much, and he had hurt her somehow. Ignoring his brother, he pulled out his phone and dialed her number. "Dude, they are flying, their phones are off," Lucas said.

He got voicemail, but instead of Haley's voice, it was Brooke's. "Hi you've reached Haley's phone, and she can't answer right now. So leave a message, unless this Nathan, in which case, don't leave a message, or call back, or contact her EVER AGAIN. Bye bye."

Nathan angrily hung up the phone. His head was swirling. He had let the most precious thing in his life slip away, and there was no one to blame but himself. "I can't lose her, man," he whispered, looking up at Lucas, not caring that tears were welling up in his eyes. "I love her."


End file.
